LIBRARY 
UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA 

^  IE 


SYNNOYE    SOLBAKKEN 


WORKS  OF 

BJORNSTJERNE  BJORNSON 

'II 

PATRIOTS   EDITION 


Synnove  Solbakken 

Translated  from  the  Norse 

By 

RASMUS  B.  ANDERSON 


NEW  YORK 
DOUBLEDAY,  PAGE  &  COMPANY 


Copyright,  1881, 1882, 
Bt  HOUGHTON,  MIFFLIN   &  CO 

All  rights  reserved. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   SKETCH 


OF 


BJOENSTJERNE   BJORNSON". 


Only  a  very  condensed  sketch  can  here  be  given 
of  the  great  Norse  poet,  novelist,  dramatist,  orator, 
and  political  leader,  whose  works  are  now  offered  to 
the  American  public. 

Bjornstjerne  Bjornson  was  born  December  8,  1832, 
in  Kvikne,  a  rural  district  in  the  central  part  of  Nor- 
way, at  the  foot  of  the  beautiful  Dovre  Mountains, 
where  his  father  was  a  Lutheran  priest.  The  scen- 
ery is  grand  and  majestic,  though  rather  austere; 
and  life  is  of  a  somewhat  solitary  character,  for  the 
farm-houses  here,  as  elsewhere  in  Norway,  are  widely 
separated  from  each  other. 

While  the  poet  was  yet  a  mere  boy,  his  father  was 
transferred  to  the  celebrated  Romsdal,  one  of  the 
finest  valleys  in  Western  Norway.  Here  the  sombre 
hues  of  the  mountain-masses  are  mingled  with  the 
variegated  splendor  of  the  valley.  Dark  fjords 
stretch  their  long  arms  into  the  country.  The  mount- 
ains, whose  summits  are  crowned  with  ice  and  snow, 
rise  almost  perpendicularly  from  the  water's  edge  in 


6  BIOGRAPHICAL   SKETCH    OF 

some  places,  while  in  others  golden  fields,  green  mead- 
ows, and  fine  forests  lie  between  the  fjord  and  the 
mountain.  The  ravines  on  the  mountain-tops  are 
filled  with  mighty  glaciers,  that  clasp  their  frosty 
arms  around  the  valley,  and  send  down,  like  streams 
of  tears  along  the  weather-beaten  cheeks  of  the  mount- 
ains, countless  waterfalls  and  cascades,  overarched 
by  beautiful  rainbows,  and  falling  in  endless  variety 
into  the  valley  and  fjord  below. 

The  environments  are  of  no  slight  importance  in 
the  development  of  genius,  and  we  find  the  impres- 
sions inspired  by  the  weird  scenes  amid  which  Bjorn- 
sou  spent  the  days  of  his  childhood,  constantly  unfold- 
ing blossoms  in  liis  poems,  novels,  and  dramas.    Nor  is 
it  alone  the  impressions  that  these  scenes  made  upon 
him  that  are  to  be  taken  into  account.     The  Norse 
folk  have  been  looking  upon  these  same  silver-crested 
mountains,  from  which  the  summer  sun  never  de- 
parts, upon  the  same  ocean,  islands,  lakes,  fjords,  and 
flower-clad  valleys,  and  have  listened  to  the  same 
melodious  brooks,  babbling  streams,  thundering  riv- 
ers, roaring  waterfalls,  and  soughing  groves,  for  gen- 
erations.     These    surroundings    have    more  or   less 
colored  the  Norse  myths,  epics,  folk-lore  tales,  bal- 
lads, melodies,  proverbs,  eddas,  sagas,  customs,  man 
ners  ;  in  short,  all  the  products  of  the  Norse  mind  and 
heart,  the  whole  life  of  the  Norsemen.     In  estimat- 
ing Bjornson's  genius,  therefore,  the  influence  of  the 
environments  and  of  Norse  traditions  upon  countless 
generations   of   his   forefathers   must   not   be   over 


BJOBNSTJERNE   BJORNSON.  7 

Jooked.  We  hope  to  be  understood  when  we  say, 
briefly,  that  the  external,  physical  nature  of  Norway 
largely  modified  and  moulded  the  ancient  Norsemen's 
character ;  that  nature  and  the  Norse  character  thus 
formed  gave  color  to  the  Norsemen's  religion,  tales, 
traditions,  and  other  intellectual  products ;  that  the 
climate  and  scenery  of  Norway,  together  with  the 
accumulative  influence  of  the  national  character  and 
the  popular  traditions  and  literature  upon  the  people 
from  generation  to  generation,  produced  a  full-blown 
flower  in  the  genius  of  Bjornstjerne  Bjornson ;  and, 
finally,  that  this  principle  may  be  applied  to  any  great 
national  writer  or  artist  in  any  country.  Nor  do  we 
by  this  statement  mean  to  exclude  the  influence  exer- 
cised by  foreign  nations  and  foreign  literatures  upon 
Bjornson  himself,  and  upon  his  ancestors. 

At  the  age  of  twelve  Bjornson  was  sent  to  the 
Molde  grammar  school.  Molde  is  a  small  coast  town 
in  Romsdal,  which  is  celebrated  on  account  of  the 
grand  and  beautiful  scenery  with  which  it  is  sur- 
rounded. But  he  was  a  dull  scholar.  When  he  was 
admonished  to  apply  himself,  in  order  that  he  might 
learn  enough  to  enter  the  university,  he  answered, 
"  They  want  me  to  study  and  read  so  much,  while  I 
would  prefer  to  write."  He  had  already  begun  to 
think  of  becoming  a  poet,  and  of  course  the  greatest 
of  all  poets,  though  he  was  constantly  reminded  that 
he  was  thought  stupid.  People  called  the  boy  an 
agitator.  When  he  was  only  fifteen  years  old,  he 
BrganLzed  a  society  of  boys  and  founded   a  paper 


8  BIOGRAPHICAL   SKETCH   OF 

written  by  hand.  Its  name  was,  as  might  be  ex- 
pected, "  Liberty."  In  the  society  political  matters 
were  discussed,  and  Bjornson  was  the  leader  of  the 
republican  party.  This  was  in  the  year  1848,  when 
revolutionary  ideas  found  their  way  even  to  the  re- 
motest valleys  of  Norway.  Bjornson's  society  had  a 
debate  on  the  election  of  president  of  the  French 
republic,  and  he  voted  for  Lamar  tine,  while  the  ma- 
jority voted  for  Louis  Napoleon. 

Nor  did  Bjornson  distinguish  himself  at  the  uni- 
versity in  Christiania,  whither  he  was  sent  in  1852. 
He  continued  to  neglect  his  regular  studies,  and  de- 
voted himself  to  poetry  and  journalism.  Caring  but 
little  for  books,  he  studied  all  the  more  earnestly 
the  volumes  of  nature  and  human  society,  both  of 
which  he  has  interpreted  with  remarkable  force  and 
beauty.  It  is  related  that  a  Swede,  who  visited 
Christiania  in  1853,  and  was  struck  by  the  fine  ap- 
pearance of  a  young  man  in  a  gathering  of  students, 
turned  to  one  near  him  and  inquired  who  that  young 
man  was.  The  answer  was,  "  Bjornstjerne  Bjornson, 
a  young  man  who  wants  to  become  a  genius."  One 
of  the  by -slanders,  who  had  listened  to  the  conversa- 
tion, added,  "  I  would  rather  call  him  a  young  genius 
\7ho  wants  to  become  a  man."  While  pursuing  his 
aniversity  course,  which  he  never  completed,  he  pro- 
iuced  his  first  literary  work  of  any  considerable 
length.  It  was  a  drama,  entitled  "  Valborg."  It 
was  accepted  by  the  managers  of  the  theatre,  but, 
before  it  was  played,  he  took  it  back  and  destroyed 


bjOrnstjkrne  bjOrnson.  9 

It.  He  had  already  outgrowu  it,  aud  decided  that  it 
would  not  do  him  credit.  For  some  time  afterward 
(1854-56)  he  devoted  his  time  mainly  to  dramatic 
criticism  and  to  reviewing  books  for  "  Aftenbladet," 
later  also  for  "  Morgeubladet,"  aud  to  corresponding 
for  provincial  newspapers. 

Norway,  since  her  separation  from  Denmark  in 
1814,  had  been  striving  to  create  a  national  literature, 
and  when  Bjornson  entered  the  university  in  1852, 
the  first  literary  epoch  of  the  young  and  free  nation 
(the  Wergeland-Welhaven  epoch)  was  about  being 
completed.  It  had  produced  Mauri ts  Christoffer 
Hansen,  the  founder  of  the  Norwegian  novel ;  Johau 
Welhaven,  the  leader  of  the  conservative  party, 
which  aimed  to  build  up  a  Norwegian  literature  on 
the  foundation  of  foreign,  particularly  Danish  cult- 
ure ;  and  his  great  opponent,  Henrik  Wergeland, 
ander  whose  banner  gathered  all  the  liberal  spirits, 
all  who  had  faith  in  the  ability  of  Norway  to  develop 
an  entirely  independent  national  literature,  art,  and 
life.  Their  object  was  to  root  out  every  trace  of 
foreign  influence.  This  first  epoch  had  also  produced 
Asbjbrnson  and  Moe,  the  collectors  of  the  popular 
tales  of  Norway ;  the  great  poet,  Andreas  Munch  ; 
*he  historians,  P.  A.  Muuch  and  Rudolf  Keyser; 
vnd  a  considerable  number  of  eminent  scholars 
unong  whom  may  be  noted  Sars  the  naturalist,  Han 
ten  the  astronomer,  Abel  the  matheraatician,  Aaseu 
tne  linguist  and  creator  of  a  new  language  for 
Norway,  based  on  the  dialects.     The  famous  violin 


10  BIOGRAPHICAL    SKETCH   OF 

ist,  Ole  Bull,  also  belougs  to  this  epoch,  and  around 
him  cluster  a  magnificent  group  of  musical  (om 
posers,  painters,  and  other  artists. 

With  the  beginning  of  the  second  half  of  this  cent- 
ury we  enter  upon  the  second  epoch  of  modern  Nor- 
wegian literature  —  the  so  -  called  Bjornson  -  Ibsen 
epoch.  The  poets  of  this  period  are  Cjornstjerne 
Bjornson,  Henrik  Ibsen,  Jonas  Lie,  and  Kristofer 
Jausou.  Of  these  Bjornson  is  decidedly  the  most 
conspicuous,  and  may  be  said  to  be  the  legitimate 
successor  to  Henrik  Wergeland,  with  whom  he  has 
much  in  common  both  as  poet  and  political  leader. 
He  is  in  fact  carrying  forward  the  work  left  unfin- 
ished by  Wergeland ;  while  Welhaven,  the  great  an- 
tagonist of  Wergeland,  has  found  no  eminent  suc- 
cessor in  the  ranks  of  living  Norse  writers. 

Bjornson's  literary  career  really  begins  with  the 
year  1857,  when  he  published  his  first  novel.  Since 
then  his  life  has  been  singularly  varied  and  active, 
and  in  the  midst  of  his  many  conflicting  occupations 
he  has  been  an  exceedingly  prolific  writer. 

Twice  he  has  been  director  of  a  theatre  :  the  first 
time  in  1858,  when  Ole  Bull  put  the  theatre  which 
he  had  founded  in  Bergen  into  his  hands;  and  the 
second  time  in  1865,  when  the  management  of  the 
Christiania  royal  theatre  was  intrusted  to  him.  He 
held  both  positions,  however,  only  for  a  brief  space 
of  time.  Three  times  he  has  entered  the  field  of 
journalism;  the  first  in  1856,  as  editor  of  his  own 
paper,  the  "  Illuatreret  Folkeblad    "  the  second  in 


bjOrnstjerne  bjornson.  11 

1859,  as  co-editor  of  *' Af tenbladet ; "  and  the  third 
in  1866,  as  editor  and  publisher  of  "  Norsk  Folke- 
blad."  Since  1856  he  has  been  a  constant  and  dili- 
gent contributor  to  the  public  press  on  all  ques- 
tions of  national  interest.  His  articles  and  addresses 
would  alone,  if  collected,  fill  many  large  volumea. 
His  winters  he  has  frequently  spent  abroad,  in  Den- 
mark, Germany,  France,  and  Italy,  and  he  is  at  this 
writing  visiting  the  United  States,  whose  citizens 
everywhere  give  an  enthusiastic  welcome  to  the  tall, 
erect,  broad-shouldered,  and  silver-tongued  son  of  the 
frozen  North, 

His  first  novel,  produced  in  1857,  was  "  Synnove 
Solbakken,"  the  volume  now  presented  to  our  readers 
in  an  English  dress.     It  at  once  made  a  profound  im- 
pression, and  established  his  reputation  both  at  home 
and  abroad,  not  only  on  account  of  the  simple  and 
charming  plot,  but  also   for  the  short,  direct,  pithy, 
saga  style  in  which  it  was  written ;  and  here  we  may 
add  that  the  author  has  been  growing  increasingly 
.erse  and  concise  in  his  style  from  that  day  to  this. 
It  became  the  corner-stone  of  a  new  school  of  litera- 
ture, and  when  we  take  into  consideration  that  the 
Wergeland-Welhaven  epoch  continued  to  be  more  or 
less  deeply  imbued  with  Danish  culture,  modern  Nor- 
wegian literature  may  fairly  be  said   to  begin  with 
"  Synnove  Solbakken."    It  was  the  first  great  national 
work  unimpressed  with  the  old  Danish  stamp.     As  is 
the  case  in  the  old  Norse  sagas,  portraits  of  the  char- 
(icters  are  no'^  drawn,  nor  are  his  works  marred  bj 


12  BIOGRAPHICAL   SKETCH   OF 

lengthy  dissertations  from  a  moral  fitand-point.  In- 
stead of  long,  fine-spun  declamations  of  this  sort,  he 
lets  his  characters  speak  for  themselves,  and  leaves  it 
to  the  reader  to  judge  whether  they  are  good  or  bad. 
He  does  not  stop  to  describe  separately  the  details  of 
features  and  dress,  but  he  watches  his  opportunity  to 
give  glimpses  of  them  as  the  story  progresses.  He  por- 
trays his  men  and  women  while  he  tells  what  they  do 
and  say,  and  thus  the  reader  knows,  when  he  has  fin- 
ished the  book,  how  Synnove,  or  Thorbjorn,  or  Aslak 
must  have  appeared  to  the  author.  As  before  stated, 
there  has  been  no  interruption  in  Bjornson's  literary 
activity,  and  he  has  given  the  world  a  series  of  novels 
and  dramas,  which  have  found  their  way  into  all  lands 
and  been  translated  into  many  tongues.  They  all 
reveal  a  startling  psychological  insight  and  acquaint- 
ance with  the  deepest  laws  of  human  life.  His  novels 
are,  besides  "  Synnove  Solbakken  ;  "  "  Arne  ;  "  "A 
Happy  Boy  ;  "  "  The  Fisher  Maiden  ; "  "  The  Bridal 
March  ; "  "  Magnhild  ;  "  "  Guiseppe  Mansana  ;  "  and 
several  short  stories.  His  dramas  are :  "  Halte  Hul- 
da ;  "  "  Mellem  Slagene  "  (Between  the  Battles)  ; 
'Kong  Svajrre;"  "  Sigurd  Slembe ;  "  "  Maria  Stu- 
k,rt ;  "  "  De  Nygifte  "  (The  Honeymoon) ;  "  Sigurd 
Jorsalfar  "  (Sigurd  the  Crusader)  ;  "  En  Fallit  "  (A 
Bankrupt)  ;  "  Redaktoren  "  (The  Editor)  ;  "  Kon 
gen"  (The  King);  '-Leonarda;"  and  "  Det  Ny 
System"  (The  New  System).  His  lyric  and  national 
songs  are  published  in  one  volume,  and  he  is  also  the 
author  of  an  epic  poem,  published  in  a  separate  vol- 


bjOrnstjerne  bjOrnson.  18 

ame,  entitled  "  Arnljot  Gelline."  When  we  add  to 
this  a  small  volume,  "Vis  Knut"  (Wise  Knut),  and 
his  little  volume  "  Republiken  "  (The  Republic), 
issued  late  in  1880,  we  have  completed  the  list  of  his 
published  works. 

Mr.  Bjornsou  is  without  a  peer  in  the  north  of 
Europe  as  novelist,  national  and  lyric  poet,  orator, 
and  contributor  to  the  daily  press ;  and  as  dramatist 
he  knows  but  one  competitor  for  the  first  rank,  Hen- 
rik  Ibsen,  whose  "Love's  Comedy,"  "  Brand,"  and 
"  Peer  Gynt  "  Edm.  W.  Gosse,  in  his  "  Studies  in  the 
Literature  of  Northern  Europe"  (London,  1879), 
characterizes  as  "  a  trilogy,  perhaps,  for  sustained 
vigor  of  expression,  for  afiiuence  of  execution,  and  for 
brilliance  of  dialogue,  the  greatest  of  modern  times." 
On  the  other  hand,  it  is  interesting  to  notice  that 
Robert  Buchanan,  an  equally  high  authority  in  liter- 
ature, pronounces  Audhild,  one  of  the  female  charac- 
ers  in  "  Sigurd  Slembe,"  Bjoruson's  great  dramatic 
trilogy,  "  a  creation  worthy  of  Goethe  at  his  best,"  — 
worthy,  in  his  opinion,  "  to  rank  with  '  Clarchen,' 
'  Marguerite,'  and  '  Mignon  '  as  a  masterpiece  of  deli- 
cate characterization."  Bjornson  has  never  been 
surpassed  in  his  delineation  of  delicate  female  types, 
both  in  his  novels  and  dramas,  and  this  furnishes  one 
of  the  best  proofs  of  his  claim  to  rank  among  the 
master  poets  of  any  age.  Bjornson's  dramas  have 
aad  a  boundless  influence'  upon  modern  thought  in 
Scandinavia,  and  we  might  include  Germany,  and 
when  jjioperly  translated  they  will  not  fail  to  secure 
him  the  homage  of  England  and  America. 


14  BIOGRAPHICAL   SKETCH   OF 

It  may  be  said  that  Bjornson's  great  work,  or 
rather  the  red  thread  running  through  all  of  Bjorn- 
son's works,  is  a  struggle  for  the  independence  of 
Norway ;  an  effort  to  secure  an  emancipation  and  de- 
velopment of  all  those  intellectual  energies  that  Nor- 
way may  properly  call  her  own.  We  discover  this 
tendency  alike  in  his  novels,  poems,  dramas,  and  in 
his  miscellaneous  writings.  He  loves  his  country, 
and  therefore  takes  a  profound  interest  in  every 
question  that  concerns  its  welfare ;  and  it  is  safe  to 
say  that  his  name  is  intimately  connected  with  every 
important  issue  that  has  been  raised  in  Norway  dur- 
ing the  past  twenty  years.  In  every  question  his 
words  and  his  songs  have  been  heard  either  'pro  or 
con.  In  many  movements  he  has  been  the  first  who 
has  spoken.  His  literary  works  are  thoroughly  im- 
bued with  the  progressive  spirit  of  the  age.  In  his 
novel  "  Magnhild  "  and  in  his  drama  "  Leonarda  "  he 
has  championed  the  rights  of  women  and  exposed  the 
wrongs  in  private  and  domestic  life  in  a  manner  that 
would  delight  the  heart  of  Julia  Ward  Howe  or  T. 
W.  Higginson.  He  saw  the  corruption  of  the  press 
4nd  wrote  his  drama  "  The  Editor."  He  saw  the 
corruption  in  the  world  of  trade  and  commerce,  and 
wrote  his  drama  "  The  Bankrupt ;  "  a  play,  by  the 
way,  which  it  seems  might  be  made  very  successful 
on  the  American  stage.  Presented  by  an  actor  like 
our  Barrett,  it  could  not  fail  to  make  a  powerful  im- 
pression. In  his  drama  "  The  King,"  Bjornson  has 
given  the  fullest  and  freest  expression  to  his  repub- 


BJORNSTJERNE   BJORNSON.  1 


t 


Ucan  tenets.  He  there  represents  monarchism  as  a  lie, 
ami  lets  the  king  himself  advocate  the  republic  as  the 
ideal  form  of  government.  To  those  who  suggest  ex- 
cuses for  and  favor  the  monarchy  as  a  temporary  evil, 
as  a  necessary  school,  in  which  the  nation  is  to  be  edu- 
cated and  ripened  for  self-government,  he  makes  the 
king,  who  has  come  to  look  at  his  royal  position  as 
false  and  abnormal,  address  this  striking  question : 
"  Is  it,  then,  necessary  that  a  people,  on  their  eternal 
progress  toward  the  truth,  should  march  with  a  lie  as 
their  leader?"  That  a  drama  enunciating  such  prin- 
ciples could  not  be  played  at  the  royal  theatre,  needs 
not  to  be  stated;  but  those  who  have  embraced  the 
doctrine  that  all  men  are  created  equal  and  endowed 
with  an  inalienable  right  to  life,  liberty,  and  the  pur- 
suit of  happiness,  hail  in  Bjornson  the  promise  of  a 
Norwegian  republic.  With  a  keen  eye  to  discover 
corruption  and  hypocrisy  in  the  church  as  well  as 
elsewhere,  he  has  broken  many  a  lance  with  the 
priests,  and  has  dealt  many  a  blow  to  the  orthodox 
bigots  of  his  time. 

Bjornson's  political  speeches  are  landmarks  in  the 
national  development  of  Norway  ;  and  his  lectures 
are  models  of  eloquence,  both  as  regards  style  and 
delivery.  One  of  the  most  splendid  efforts  of  his 
life  as  an  orator  was  his  address  at  Ole  Bull's  grave, 
•)n  August  24,  1880,  to  an  audience  of  more  than 
twenty  thousand  people.  Ole  Bull's  funeral  was 
more  magnificent  and  solemn  than  if  he  had  been  a 
king;   but  the  greatest  honor  of  the  f'ay  was  em» 


16  BIOGRAPHICAL   SKETCH   OF 

bodied  in  Bjornson's  remarks,  of  which  every  word 
was  a  diamond  iu  the  crown  of  the  violinist's  immor- 
tal fame. 

When  Bjbrnson  writes  a  national  song  it  is  at  once 
taken  up  and  sung  by  the  whole  nation,  from  Lindes- 
nes  to  North  Cape.  The  national  hymn  of  Norway 
to-day  is  his  song  written  in  1859,  of  which  we  will 
attempt  to  translate  two  or  three  stanzas :  — 

'*  Yes,  we  love  with  fond  devotion 

Norway's  mouutaiu  domes, 
Rising,  storm-lasiied,  o'er  the  ocean, 

With  their  thousand  homes ; 
Love  our  country,  while  we're  bending 

Thoughts  to  fathers  grand, 
And  to  saga-night  that's  sending 

Dreams  upon  our  land. 

"  Harald  Norway's  throne  ascended 

By  his  mighty  sword  ; 
Hakon  Norway's  rights  defended 

Helped  by  Oyviud's  word ; 
From  the  blood  of  Olaf  sainted 

Christ's  red  cross  arose; 
From  its  peaks  King  Sverre  tainted 

Bishops  dared  oppose. 

"  Peasants  all  their  axes  brightfned. 

Ready  for  each  foe ; 
Tordenskjold  in  battles  lightened 

Set  the  land  aglow. 
Even  women  did  assemble 

On  the  bloody  plain; 
Others  could  but  weep  and  tremble, 

But 't  wa*  not  in  vam." 

Another  very   popular   song  by   Bjornson   is   hii 
'  Over  de  hole  Fjselde  "  (Over  the  Lofty  Mountains) 


b.jOrnst.terne  bjOrnson.  17 

which  is  V  ivy  characteristic  of  the  author's  style,  and 
expresses  in  sublime  verses  the  longings  and  aspiration 
of  the  young  Norsemen.  It  is,  iu  fact,  an  expression 
of  the  yearning  of  the  young  Norway,  and  is  not  in- 
applicable to  the  ambitious  struggles  of  the  young 
Bjoruson  himself.  Mr.  Bjornson  told  us,  when  we 
visited  him  in  1873,  that  he  considered  it  his  best 
poem.  We  are  happy  to  be  able  to  give  a  spirited 
and  faithful  metrical  version  of  it  from  the  pen  of 
Auber  Foiestier,  the  author  of  "  Echoes  from  Mist- 
laud,  and  translator  of  Kristofer  Janson's  "  The 
Spell-Bound  Fiddler,"  and  various  other  works. 

"  Oh,  how  I  wonder  what  I  should  see 
Over  the  lofty  mountains  ! 
Snow  here  shuts  out  the  view  from  me. 
Round  about  stands  the  green  pine-tree, 
Longing  to  hasten  over  ; 
Dare  it  become  a  rover  V 

"  Soars  the  eagle,  with  strong  wing  play, 
Over  the  lofty  mountains; 

Rows  through  the  young  and  vigorous  day, 

Sating  his  courage  in  quest  of  prey; 
When  he  will,  swooping  downward, 
Tow'rd  far-oS  lands  gazing  onward 

"  Leaf-heavy  apple,  wilt  thou  not  go 
Over  the  lofty  mountains  ? 

Forth  putting  buds  'mid  summer's  glow, 

Thou  wilt  till  next  time  wait,  I  know ; 
All  of  these  birds  art  swinging, 
Knowing  not  what  they  're  singing. 

"  He  who  for  twenty  years  long'd  to  fle« 
Over  the  lofty  mountains, 
2 


18  BIOGRAPHICAL   SKETCH   OF 

Nor  bej'ond  them  can  hope  to  see, 

Smaller  each  year  feels  himself  to  be ; 
Hears  what  the  birds  are  singing, 
Thou  art  with  confidence  swinging. 

•'  Bird,  with  thy  chatt'ring,  what  wouldst  thou  here, 
Over  the  lofty  mountains  ? 
Fairer  the  lands  beyond  must  appear, 
Higher  the  trees,  and  the  skies  far  more  clear: 
Wouldst  thou  but  longing  be  bringing, 
Bird,  but  no  wings  with  thy  singing? 

"  Shall  I  the  journey  never  take 
Over  the  lofty  mountains  V 
Mast  my  poor  thoughts  on  this  rock-wall  break? 
Must  it  a  dread,  ice-bound  prison  make, 
Shutting  at  last  in  around  me, 
Till  for  my  tomb  it  surround  me  ? 

"  Forth  will  I !  forth  !     Oh,  far,  far  away, 
Over  the  lofty  mountains  ! 
I  will  be  crushed  and  consumed  if  I  stay  ; 
Courage  tow'rs  up  and  seeks  the  way, 
Let  it  its  flight  now  be  taking. 
Not  on  this  rock-wall  be  breaking ! 

"  One  day  I  know  I  shall  wander  afar 
Over  the  lofty  mountains  ! 
Lord,  my  God,  is  thy  door  ajar  ? 
Good  is  thy  home,  where  the  blessed  are; 
Keep  it,  though  closed  a  while  longer, 
Till  my  deep  longing  grow  stronger." 

The  Btirrmg  music  written  for  both  of  these  poems 
will  be  found  in  the  "  Norway  Music  Album,"  re- 
oently  published  by  Oliver  Ditson  &  Co.,  Boston. 

We  cannot  close  this  brief  sketch  of  Mr.  Bjornson 
jfithout  giving  an  account  of  an  interesting  ''ncident 


B.rORNST.TERNE    B.IORNSON.  19 

w^hich  occurred  in  Madison,  Wisconsin,  during  his 
visit  here  in  the  beginning  of  January,  1881. 

While  Mr.  Bjoruson  was  stopping  at  the  hotel  in 
this  city,  an  elderly  man  came  to  see  him.  At  the 
sight  of  Bjornson  tlie  man  was  very  much  moved,  — - 
sobbed  like  a  child,  the  tears  choking  his  voice,  while 
he  attempted  to  greet  the  great  skald  of  the  North. 
Mr.  Bjornson  also  appeared  to  be  deeply  touched  by 
the  sudden  appearance  of  his  guest,  and,  grasping  his 
hand,  he  exclaimed,  "  Why,  are  you  here,  my  dear 
Arne  ?  "  The  scene  of  their  meeting  was  intensely 
affecting,  and  the  reason  for  it  will  be  evident  from 
the  following  explanation:^  Arne  is  not  the  "Arne" 
of  Bjbrnson's  novel  of  that  name,  but  Arne  Kulter- 
stad,  a  Norwegian,  whose  life  he  had  saved  twenty 
years  ago.  He  is  a  man  about  fifty  years  old,  has 
a  large  frame,  and  in  his  younger  days  must  have 
been  the  very  picture  of  strength  and  beauty. 

Some  twenty-five  years  ago,  Arne,  a  fine-looking, 
vigorous  young  man,  who  had  been  a  sergeant  in  the 
Norwegian  army,  and  as  such  had  become  noted  for 
his  athletic  strength,  as  well  as  for  his  kindly  disposi- 
tion and  honest  character,  had  a  serious  feud  with 
one  of  his  neighbors  in  his  mountain  home  in  Val- 
ders,  a  valley  in  the  central  part  of  Norway.  His 
tnemy  was  a  dissipated,  mean,  cringing,  and  base 
villain,  who  at  a  party  succeeded  in  getting  Arne 

1  Mr.  Bjornson  told  the  story  in  detail,  in  my  presence,  to  • 
reporter  of  the  Madison  Slate  Journal,  from  which  I  have,  in 
r&rt,  transcribed  it  for  these  pages. 


20  BIOGRAPHICAL    SKETCH   OF 

drunk,  and  persuaded  him  to  sign  papers  by  which 
he  lost  his  old  homestead.  The  feud  grew  in  bitter- 
ness from  year  to  year.  One  day,  when  business 
had  brought  both  to  the  same  place,  it  came  to 
blows  between  them,  and  his  foe  drew  a  knife,  and 
gave  Arne  severe  wounds  in  his  hand  and  arm,  the 
marks  of  which  he  bears  to  this  day.  There  were 
many  other  aggravating  circumstances,  among  which 
may  be  mentioned,  as  the  worst,  the  fact  that  upon 
the  farm  which  his  enemy  had  gotten  possession 
of  Arne's  father  lived  and  received  his  annual  al- 
lowance, according  to  Norwegian  law.  When  the 
father  lay  upon  his  death-bed,  Arne  visited  him,  and 
learned  that  he  had  been  ill-treated,  and  that  his 
death  had  probably  been  hastened  by  the  cruelty  of 
the  owner  of  the  farm.  This  so  enraged  Arne  that 
revenge  was  a  mere  question  of  time  and  opportunity. 
The  opportunity  was  not  easily  found,  for  the  villain 
feared  Arne,  and  shrewdly  avoided  meeting  him. 
He  never  went  out  alone.  One  morning,  early,  he 
had,  however,  deemed  it  safe  to  go  a  short  distance 
from  home  with  his  team.  But  it  so  happened  that 
Arne  too  had  gone  out  that  morning  with  his  rifle  to 
nunt,  when  on  returning  he  saw  his  enemy,  and  at 
once  determined  to  give  him  a  mark  at  least  as  severe 
as  the  one  he  bore  himself.  He  raised  his  gun  to 
take  sight.  He  was  one  of  the  best  marksmen  in  the 
country,  and  had  brought  down  many  a  bird  on  the 
wing;  but,  unfortunately,  as  his  enemy  was  walking 
^y  the  Bide  of  his  team,  he  happened  to  stumble  jus.* 


B.IORNSTJEKNE    lUORNSON.  21 

at  the  moment  when  Arne  pulled  the  trigger,  and,  in- 
stead of  giving  him  a  severe  wound  in  the  arm,  as  he 
intended,  the  bullet  entered  his  breast,  and  he  soon 
after  expired. 

Arue  was  convicted  of  murder,  and  sentenced  to 
death.  This  was  in  the  lower  court.  The  case  wab 
appealed.  Mark  now  the  remarkable  incident  which 
occurred !  Having  been  sentenced  to  death  by  this 
lower  court,  he  was  to  be  transferred  to  an  adjoining 
bailiwick.  The  bailiJS  who  had  him  in  charge,  know- 
ing his  prisoner's  honesty  and  truthfulness,  did  what 
probably  no  other  bailiff  ever  did.  The  bailiff  was 
very  busy,  and  Arne,  knowing  this,  told  him  that 
there  was  no  necessity  of  his  going  with  him  or  send- 
ing any  guards,  for  he  would  go  alone  and  place 
himself  in  the  hands  of  the  officer  in  the  next  baili- 
wick ;  and  such  confidence  had  the  bailiff  in  Arne's 
uprightness  and  integrity  that  he  unhesitatingly  sent 
him  alone,  without  any  guard,  and  Arne  promptly  did 
as  he  had  agreed  ! 

The  sentence  of  the  lower  court  was  confirmed  by 
the  supreme  court,  without  any  recommendation  to 
pardon.  As  there  was  no  direct  evidence  in  the  case, 
Arne's  lawyer  had  advised  the  defendant  to  deny 
everything.  The  effect  of  a  confession  was  now  re- 
sorted to,  but  without  avail.  He  was  locked  up  in 
prison,  and  in  a  few  days  he  was  to  be  beheaded. 
The  young  and  enthusiastic  poet  Bjornson  was  at 
this  time  in  the  capital.  He  had  heard  of  the  case, 
"jad  read  all  that  had  been  said  about  it  in  the  presa, 


22  BIOGRAPHICAL    SKETCH   OF 

and  had  become  so  much  interested  in  it  that  he 
went  to  the  prison,  partly  to  see  this  remarkable 
criminal,  partly  out  of  curiosity  to  see  a  man  who 
stood  at  the  threshold  of  execution.  He  had  a  long 
talk  with  Arne,  and  was  much  affected  by  his  man- 
ner and  by  his  story  of  the  aggravating  circum- 
stances which  had  led  to  his  great  crime.  As  he  was 
about  to  leave  the  prison-cell,  Arne  arose,  stretched 
out  both  arms  to  Bjornson,  and  besought  him  in 
tones  of  deepest  agony  :  ''  Oh,  save  me  !  "  These 
words  rang  in  the  ears  of  the  poet,  and  he  determined 
to  move  heaven  and  earth,  if  this  were  possible,  to 
procure  a  pardon.  He  immediately  set  himself  to 
work,  and  wrote  for  the  press  what  he  still  considers 
the  most  masterly  article  of  his  life  ;  indeed,  such  an 
article  as  but  few  others  than  Bjornson  could  write. 
It  set  the  whole  community,  the  whole  land,  in  com 
motion.  The  wives  and  daughters  of  the  judges  who 
had  pronounced  the  sentence  and  the  wives  of  the 
members  of  the  king's  cabinet  were  the  first  to  sign-  a 
petition  to  the  government  for  his  pardon.  The  death- 
sentence  was  changed  by  the  king  to  imprisonment  for 
life.  For  twenty  long  years  Arne  had  to  remain  in 
prison,  and  not  until  the  summer  of  1880  was  he  re- 
leased. By  this  time  his  wife  had  died,  and  his  family 
was  scattered.  He  found  himself  alone  and  friendless 
in  a  dreary  world.  After  twenty  years  of  confinement 
within  the  walls  of  a  prison,  liberty  itself  scarcely 
seemed  a  boon.  He  came  to  Wisconsin,  where  he 
Had  a  married  daughter.    Hearing  of  Bjornson's  arri 


BJOKNSTJEKNE    BJORNSON.  23 

<al  in  Madison,  lie  immediately  came  to  visit  him ; 
and  the  meeting  of  these  two  men  was  indeed  an 
affecting  scene.  "  You  are  my  second  father,  Bjorn- 
8on,  and  I  cannot  tell  you  how  much  I  love  you," 
said  Arne  to  his  benefactor.  "  I  owe  my  life  to 
you."  Arne  is  poor,  and  feels  nowhere  at  home. 
America  seems  no  place  for  him.  The  poet,  with  hia 
usual  kindness,  received  him  as  cordially  as  a  brother. 
He  offered  to  care  for  the  unfortunate  man  in  his  old 
age,  and  directed  me  to  advance  to  Arne  the  neces- 
sary funds  for  defraying  his  expenses  back  to  Nor- 
way, where  he  will  have  a  home  and  employment  on 
Bjornson's  estate. 

This  unvarnished  tale,  besides  furnishing  a  real 
Arne  by  the  side  of  the  hero  of  his  novel  "  Arne," 
gives  Bjornson  a  well-earned  place  among  the  philan- 
thropists of  the  world. 

Of  the  translation  it  is  needless  to  say  that  pains 
have  been  taken  to  make  it  as  faithful  and  readable 
as  possible. 

It  remains  only  to  be  added  that  in  the  prepara- 
tion of  this  American  edition  of  Bjornson's  stories  I 
have  availed  myself  of  the  experienced  and  valuable 
assistance  of  Auber  Forestier,  whose  kind  services 
are  hereby  gratefully  acknowledged. 

RASMUS   B.   ANDERSON. 
Uadisom,  Wis.,  April,  1881. 


SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 


CHAPTER   I. 

In  a  large  valley  it  often  happens  that  there 
18  a  high  spot,  open  on  every  side,  which  the 
sun  paints  with  his  pencils  from  early  dawn 
until  twilight  has  faded  away.  And  they  who 
live  nearer  the  foot  of  the  mountains,  and  sel- 
domer  get  the  sun,  call  this  spot  a  Solbakke.^ 
The  person  of  whom  this  story  tells  lived  in 
such  a  spot  as  this,  and  from  it  the  gard  ^  took 
its  name.  There  the  snow  was  last  to  cover 
the  ground  in  the  autumn,  and  there  it  first 
melted  in  the  spring. 

The  owners  of  the  gard  were  Haugians,'  and 
were  called  Readers,  because  they  read  the 
Bible  more  diligently  than  other  people.  The 
man's  name  was  Guttorm,  his  wife's  Karen. 
Their  first  child  was  a  son  ;  but  death  took  him 
from  them,  and  for  three  years  they  never  went 

1  A  sunny  hill. 
'  A  Norwegian  farm. 

«  Followers  of  Hans  Nielsen  Hauge,  a  Norwegian  revivalist  ii» 
iie  early  part  of  tliis  century- 


26  SYNNOVE    SOLBAKKEN. 

on  tbe  east  side  of  the  church.  At  the  end  of 
this  time  a  girl  was  given  to  them,  whom  they 
named  after  the  boy ;  his  name  had  been  Syvert, 
and  she  was  christened  Synnov,  as  they  could 
not  find  anything  nearer.  But  the  mother 
called  her  Synnove,  because  she  had  a  habit,  as 
long  as  the  child  was  small,  of  adding  "  mine  " 
to  the  name,  and  so  this  seemed  to  come  easier. 
However  this  might  be,  as  the  girl  grew  up 
every  one  called  ber  Synnove,  as  her  mother 
did,  and  most  people  said  that,  in  the  memory 
of  man,  there  had  not  been  in  the  parish  so 
fair  a  girl  as  Synnove  Solbakken.  She  was 
not  man}?^  years  old  before  they  took  her  with 
them  to  church  every  Sunday  there  was  serv- 
ice, although  at  first  Synnove  knew  no  better 
than  to  think  the  priest  was  standing  there 
scolding  at  Slave  Bent,  whom  she  saw  sitting 
right  down  below  the  pulpit.  Her  father,  how- 
ever, wanted  her  to  go  with  them,  —  "  to  form 
the  habit,"  he  said ;  and  her  mother  wished 
it,  too,  "  because  no  one  knew  how  the  child 
would  be  taken  care  of  at  home  while  they  were 
gone."  If  there  chanced  to  be  a  lamb,  a  kid, 
or  some  little  pig  on  the  gard  that  did  not 
thrive,  or  a  cow  that  anything  was  the  matter 
with,  it  was  always  given  over  into  Synnove's 
possession ;  and  the  mother  seemed  to  feel  sure 


SYNNOVE    S0LF5AKKEN.  27 

that  from  that  moment  it  did  well.  The  father 
did  not  quite  believe  this  to  be  the  cause ; 
but  ''  after  all  it  did  not  matter  which  of  them 
owned  the  beasts,  so  that  these  only  prospered.' 
On  the  opposite  side  of  the  valley,  and  close 
to  the  foot  of  a  high  mountain,  there  was  a 
gard  named  Granliden,^  so  called  because  it 
lay  in  the  midst  of  a  great  spruce  forest,  the 
only  one  for  many  miles  around.  The  owner's 
great-grandfather  had  been  among  those  who 
lay  in  waiting  for  the  Russians  in  Holstein,  and 
from  that  expedition  he  had  brought  home  in 
his  knapsack  many  foreign  and  strange-looking 
seeds.  These  he  planted  round  about  his  house; 
but  in  the  course  of  time  one  kind  after  another 
had  died  out ;  meanwhile  some  spruce  cones, 
which,  oddly  enough,  had  been  mixed  in  with 
the  rest,  had  produced  a  dense  furest,  which 
now  shaded  the  house  on  every  side.  The  Hol- 
stein soldier's  name  had  been  Thorbjorn,  after 
his  grandfather  ;  that  of  his  eldest  son  Seemund, 
after  his  father ;  and  thus  the  owners  of  the 
gard  had  alternately  been  named  Thorbjorn 
and  Siemund,  from  time  out  of  mind.  But  it 
was  said  that  only  every  other  man  at  Granli- 
den  had  good  luck,  and  it  was  not  he  who  bore 
the  name  Thorbjorn.     The  present  owner,  Sae 

1  The  sprace  slope. 


28  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

luund,  had  tliought  the  matter  over  from  vari- 
ous points  of  view,  when  liis  first  son  was  born, 
but  scarcely  liked  to  break  the  family  custom, 
and  so  called  him  Thorbjorn.  He  pondered 
much  upon  whether  the  boy  might  not  be  so 
brought  up  that  he  would  escape  the  fate  gossip 
had  laid  in  his  way.  He  was  not  altogether 
sure,  but  he  thoiight  he  detected  a  willful  dis- 
position in  the  boy.  "  That  shall  be  plucked 
out,"  said  he  to  the  mother  ;  and  when  Thor- 
bjorn was  only  three  years  old  the  father  would 
sometimes  sit  with  the  switch  in  his  hand,  and 
compel  him  to  carry  all  the  sticks  of  fire- wood 
back  to  their  place  ;  to  pick  up  the  cup  he  had 
thrown  down  ;  to  stroke  the  cat  he  had  pinched. 
But  the  mother  preferred  to  leave  the  room 
when  the  father  was  in  this  mood. 

Ssemund  was  surprised  to  find  that  the  older 
the  boy  grew  the  more  there  was  to  correct  in 
him,  and  this  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  he  was 
dealt  with  more  and  more  strictly.  He  set  him 
early  to  reading,  and  took  him  out  in  the  fields 
with  him  in  order  to  have  an  eye  upon  him. 
The  mother  had  a  large  house  and  small  chil- 
dren ;  she  could  do  no  more  than  caress  and  ad- 
monish him  every  morning,  while  she  was  dress- 
ing him,  and  talk  gently  with  the  father  when 
Sabbaths   brought  them  together.     But  Thor- 


synnOve  solhakken.  29 

bjorn,  when  he  got  a  whipping  because  a-b 
spelled  ab,  and  not  ha,  and  because  he  was  not 
allowed  to  administer  the  rod  to  little  Ingrid, 
as  his  father  did  to  him,  thought,  "  It  is  strange 
that  I  must  have  such  a  hard  time,  while  all  my 
little  brothers  and  sisters  have  everything  so 
nice. 

As  he  passed  most  of  his  time  with  his  father, 
and  did  not  dare  say  much  to  him,  he  talked 
little,  but  thought  the  more.  Once,  though, 
while  they  were  hauling  in  the  wet  hay,  the 
words  escaped  him,  — 

"  Why  is  all  the  hay  dry  and  in  over  there 
at  Solbakken,  while  here  it  is  still  wet  ?  " 

"  Because  they  have  the  sun  oftener  than  we." 

This  was  the  first  time  he  had  noticed  that 
the  bright  sunshine  over  there,  which  he  so 
many  times  had  sat  and  looked  at  with  pleas- 
ure, was  something  that  he  was  shut  out  from. 
After  that  day  his  eye  fell  oftener  on  Solbak- 
ken  than  befoi'e. 

"  Do  not  sit  gaping  there,"  said  his  father, 
and  gave  him  a  push.  ''  Over  here  we  have  to 
drudge  all  we  can,  both  old  and  young,  if  we 
are  to  get  anything  housed." 

Sasmund  changed  his  servant-boy  when  Thor 
bjorn  was  about  seven  or  eight.  Aslak  was  the 
aame  of  the  new  servant,  and  he  had  alread} 


so  SYNNOVE    SOLBAKKKN. 

been  about  a  good  deal,  tliougli  lie  was  yet  a 
mere  boy.  The  evening  be  came  Tliorbjoiii 
had  gone  to  bed  ;  but  the  next  day,  as  he  sat 
reading,  the  door  was  pushed  open  with  a  kick, 
the  like  of  which  he  had  never  heard  before.  It 
was  Aslak,  who  came  rushing  in  with  a  large 
armful  of  wood,  and  flung  it  down  with  such 
force  that  the  sticks  flew  in  every  direction 
Then  he  jumped  up  and  down  to  stamp  the 
snow  off  of  him,  and  with  every  jump  he  ex- 
claimed, — 

"  It  is  cold,  said  the  troll-bride,  as  she  sat  in 
ice  up  to  her  waist !  " 

The  father  was  not  in,  but  the  mother  swept 
together  the  snow  and  carried  it  out,  without  a 
word. 

"  What  are  you  staring  at?  "said  Aslak  to 
Thorbjorn. 

"Not  at  anything,"  said  the  latter,  for  he 
was  frightened. 

"  Have  you  seen  the  rooster  you  have  in  the 
back  of  your  book  there  ?  " 

"  Yes." 

"  He  has  a  lot  of  hens  around  him  when  the 
book  is  shut ;  have  you  seen  that?  " 

"  No." 

«  Well,  then,  look." 

The  boy  did  so. 


SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN.  31 

"  You  are  a  dunce !  "  said  Aslak  to  him. 
But  from  that  moment  no  one  had  the  power 
over  him  that  Ashik  had. 

"  You  do  not  know  anything,"  said  Aslak, 
one  day,  to  Thorbjorn,  who  was  trotting  after 
him,  as  usual,  to  watch  what  he  was  doing. 

''  Yes,  I  do.  I  know  as  far  as  the  fourth  part 
in  my  catechism." 

"Pooh!  No,  you  have  not  even  heard  of 
the  troll  who  danced  with  the  girl  until  the  sun 
rose,  and  then  burst  like  a  calf  that  has  been 
eating  sour  milk  !  " 

In  all  his  days,  Thorbjorn  had  never  heard 
any  one  display  so  much  knowledge  at  once. 
"  Where  was  that?  "  he  asked. 
"Where?     Why,  it  was  —  yes,  it  was  over 
there  at  Solbakken  !  " 
Thorbjorn  stared. 

"Did  you  ever  hear  of  the  man  who  sold 
himself  to  the  devil  for  a  pair  of  old  boots  ?  " 

Thorbjorn  forgot  to  answer,  so  astonished 
was  he. 

"  I  suppose  you  are  thinking  of  where  that 
was,  hey  ?  It  was  also  over  there  at  Solbak- 
ken, right  down  there  in  that  brook  which  you 
Bee.  Lord  help  us  !  Your  religious  knowledge 
does  not  amount  to  much,"  added  he.  "  1 
fancy  you  have  not  even  heard  of  Kari,  with 
the  wooden  petticoat." 


82  SYNNOVE   SULBAKKhW. 

No,  Thorbjorn  had  not  beard  ot  an^'Lumg. 
And  while  Aslak  was  working  fast  he  was  i?ell- 
ing  still  faster,  and  it  was  about  Kari  with  the 
wooden  petticoat,  about  the  mill  that  ground 
salt  at  the  bottom  of  the  sea,  about  the  devil 
with  the  wooden  shoes,  about  the  troll  that  got 
his  beard  caught  in  the  branch  of  a  tree,  about 
the  seven  green  maidens  who  pulled  the  hair  out 
of  Peter  Hunter's  legs  while  he  slept  and  could 
not  possibly  awakeu  ;  and  it  all  took  place  over 
there  at  Solbakken. 

"  What,  in  the  name  of  Heaven,  ails  the 
boy  ?  "  said  the  mother,  the  next  day.  "  He 
has  been  on  his  knees  on  the  bench  yonder, 
looking  over  at  Solbakken,  ever  since  it  was 
light." 

*■'■  Yes,  he  keeps  very  busy  to-day,"  said  the 
father,  who  lay  taking  his  rest  the  long  Sunday. 

"  Oh,  folks  say  that  he  has  captured  Synnove 
Solbakken,"  Aslak  was  saying;  "but  folks  say 
so  many  strange  things,"  added  he, 

Thorbjorn  did  not  exactly  understand  him 
but  nevertheless  his  whole  face  grew  fiery  red. 
When  Aslak  commented  on  this,  he  crept  down 
from  the  bench,  took  his  catechism,  and  seated 
himself  to  read. 

"  Yes,  you  may  as  well  console  yourself  with 
the  word  of  God,"  said  Aslak  ;  "you  will  never 
get  her,  any  way." 


synnOve  solbakken.  33 

When  the  week  was  so  far  advanced  that  he 
thought  they  had  forgotten  this,  he  asked  his 
mother,  quite  softly,  for  he  felt  bashful  about 
it,— 

♦'  Say,  who  is  Synnove  Solbakken  ?  " 

"  She  is  a  little  girl  who  will  one  day  own 
Solbakken." 

"  Has  she,  then,  not  a  wooden  petticoat?  " 

The  mother  looked  at  him  in  surprise.  "  What 
is  that  you  say  ?  "  said  she. 

He  felt  that  he  must  have  said  something 
stupid,  and  was  silent. 

"  A  prettier  child  has  never  been  seen  than 
she  is,"  added  the  mother,  "■  and  that  is  her  re- 
wai'd  from  the  Lord  because  she  is  always  kind 
and  good  and  is  an  industrious  reader." 

Now  he  knew  that,  too. 

One  day,  when  Saemund  had  been  out  in  the 
field  with  Aslak,  he  said  in  the  evening  to 
Thorbjorn,  — 

"  You  must  not  go  with  Aslak  any  more." 

But  Thorbjorn  gave  little  heed  to  this.  So 
after  a  while  the  order  came  :  — 

"  If  you  are  found  with  him  any  more,  it  will 
not  be  well  for  you  !  " 

Then  Thorbjorn  stole  after  Aslak,  when  the 
father  did  not  see  him.  Ssemund  surprised 
them,  though,  one  day,  when  they  sat  talking 


34  synnOve  solbakken. 

together;  then  Tborbjorn  got  a  thrashmg,  and 
was  told  to  go  in.  But  afterward  Tliorbjorn 
watched  his  chance  to  be  with  Aslak  when  his 
father  was  not  at  home. 

One  Sunday,  while  the  father  was  at  churclij 
Thorbjorn  got  his  hands  into  mischief  at  home. 
Aslak  and  he  were  throwing  snow-balls  at  each 
other. 

"  Oh,  stop  !  you  are  choking  me  !  "  begged 
Thorbjorn.  "  Let  us  throw  together  at  some- 
thing else." 

Aslak  was  ready  at  once,  and  so  they  threw 
first  at  the  slender  spruce  over  by  the  store- 
house, then  at  the  store-house  door,  and  finally 
at  the  store-house  window. 

"  Not  at  the  window  itself,"  said  Aslak,  "but 
at  the  frame  around  it."  Meanwhile,  Thor- 
bjorn hit  the  window-pane,  and  turned  pale. 

"  Pooh,  who  will  know  it  ?     Try  it  again." 

He  did  so,  but  hit  another. 

"  Now  I  will  not  throw  any  more,"  said  he. 

At  that  moment  his  eldest  sister,  little  In- 
grid,  came  out. 

"  Throw  at  Aer,  Thorbjorn  ! " 

Thorbjorn  did  so  immediately.  The  girl 
cried,  and  the  mother  came  out.  She  bade  him 
stop. 

"  Throw,  throw  !  "  whispered  Aslak. 


synnOve  solbakken.  35 

Thorbjorn  was  hot  and  excited  ;  he  did  so. 

"  Why,  yoii  must  be  losing  your  s.enses  1 " 
said  the  mother,  and  rushed  toward  him,  —  he 
ran  before,  she  after,  all  round  the  grounds. 
Aslak  laughed  and  the  mother  scolded.  She 
caught  Thorbjorn  at  last  in  a  snow-drift,  and 
began  to  give  him  a  good  drubbing. 

"  I  will  strike  back  again,  I  will  I "  said  he. 
"  That  is  the  way  they  do  here." 

The  mother  ceased  in  surprise,  and  looked  at 
him. 

"  That  some  one  else  has  taught  you,"  she 
then  said,  and  taking  him  silently  by  the  hand, 
led  him  in.  She  spoke  not  another  word  to 
him,  but  kindly  cared  for  his  little  brothers  and 
sisters,  and  told  them  their  father  would  now 
soon  come  home  from  church.  Then  it  began 
to  grow  pretty  hot  in  the  room.  Aslak  asked 
leave  to  visit  a  relative  ;  he  got  it  at  once ;  but 
Thorbjorn  felt  much  smaller  when  Aslak  was 
gone.  He  had  a  terrible  pain  in  his  stomach, 
-ind  his  hands  were  so  clammy  that  they  made 
kis  book  moist  when  he  took  hold  of  it.  If 
jnly  his  mother  would  not  say  anything  to  his 
father,  when  he  came  home;  but  Thorbjorn 
couid  not  bring  himself  to  ask  it.  Everything 
his  eye  fell  on  kept  changing  looks,  and  the 
olock    said,    Spanking,    spanking,  -     spanking, 


36  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

spanking.  He  had  to  get  up  to  the  window 
and  look  over  at  Solbakkeu.  It  alone,  all  cov- 
ered with  snow;  lay  quiet  and  sparkling  in  the 
sunshine,  just  as  usual ;  the  house  stood  and 
laughed  out  of  all  the  window-panes,  and  there 
was  surely  not  one  of  them  broken  ;  the  smoke 
rose  with  such  tremendous  joy  from  the  chim- 
ney that  he  judged  that  over  there,  too,  they 
were  getting  dinner  for  the  church  people.  No 
doubt  Synnove  was  watching  for  her  father, 
and  was  not  to  have  a  whipping  when  he  got 
home.  Thorbjorn  did  not  know  what  to  do 
with  himself,  and  all  at  once  became  so  affec- 
tionate to  his  sisters  that  there  was  no  end  to 
it.  To  Ingrid  he  was  so  good  that  he  gave  her 
a  bright  button  he  had  received  from  Aslak. 
She  put  her  arms  about  his  neck,  and  he  put 
his  arms  about  hers,  saying,  — 

"  Dear  little  Ingrid  mine,  are  you  angry  with 

me?" 

"  No,  little  Thorbjorn  !  You  may  throw  as 
much  snow  at  me  as  you  like." 

But  there  was  some  one  stamping  the  snow 
cff  in  the  hall.  Yes,  sure  enough,  it  was  the 
father.  Ra  appeared  to  be  in  a  good  humor, 
and  that  made  the  matter  still  worse. 

"  Weil?  "  said  he,  looking  around,  —  and  it 
was  astonishing  that  the  clock  did  not  tumble 


synnOve  solbakken.  37 

down.     The  mother  put  the  dinner  on  the  ta- 
ble. 

"  How  have  things  been  going  here  ?  "  asked 
the  father,  as  he  seated  himself  and  took  up  hia 
spoon. 

Thorbjorn  looked  at  his  mother  until  the 
tears  came  into  his  eyes. 

"  Oh  — well,"  said  she,  with  incredible  slow- 
ness ;  and  she  meant  to  say  more,  —  that  he 
plainly  saw.  "  I  gave  Aslak  permission  to  go 
out,"  said  she. 

"  She  did  not  do  it  this  time,"  thought  Thor- 
bjorn. He  began  to  play  with  Ingrid,  as  though 
he  were  thinking  of  nothing  else  in  the  world. 
The  father  had  never  taken  so  long  to  eat  his 
dinner,  and  Thorbjorn  set  to  work,  at  last,  to 
count  every  bite ;  but  when  he  came  to  the 
fourth  he  wanted  to  see  how  many  he  could 
count  between  the  fourth  and  the  fifth,  and 
then  he  lost  track  of  it.  Finally,  the  father  rose 
and  went  out.  The  window-panes !  the  window- 
panes  !  kept  ringing  in  his  ears,  and  he  looked 
round  to  see  whether  those  in  the  room  were 
whole.  Yes,  they  were  all  whole.  But  now 
his  mother  also  went  out.  Thorbjorn  took  lit- 
tle Ingrid  in  his  lap,  and  said,  so  gently  that 
she  stared  at  him  in  amazement,  — 

"Come,  let  us   two   play  the  gold  princess 
in  the  meadow." 


38  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

That  she  would  like  to  do.     Aud  so  he  sang 
while  his  legs  trembled  under  him :  - 

"Little  blossom, 
Meadow  blossom, 
Hearken  now  to  me  ! 
If  you  will  be  my  sweetheart  so  true, 
A  velvet  cloak  I  '11  give  to  you, 
Adorned  with  gold 
And  pearls  untold. 
Ditteli,  dutteli,  deadow,  — 
The  sun  now  shines  on  the  meadow  ! " 

Then  she  answered,  — 

"Gold  princess, 
Jewel  princess, 
Hearken  now  to  me ! 
I  '11  never  be  your  sweetheart  so  true, 
I  '11  have  no  velvet  cloak  from  you. 
Adorned  with  gold 
And  pearls  untold. 
Ditteli,  dutteli,  deadow, — 
^  The  sun  now  shines  on  the  meadow!  "  i 

But  just  as  this  game  was  well  under  way, 
his  father  came  in,  and  fixed  knowing  eyes  on 
him.  Thorbjorn  drew  Ingrid  closer  up  in  his 
lap,  and  did  not  fall  from  his  chair. 

The  father  turned  away,  said  nothing.     Half 
an  hour  passed ;  he  had  not  yet  said  anything, 
and  Thorbjorn  was  almost  about  to  be  happy 
nut  did  not  dare.     He  knew  not  what  to  think 
when  the  father  himself  helped  to  undress  him 

1  Aaber  Forestier's  translation. 


synnOve  solbakken.  39 

no  began  gradually  to  tremble  again.  Then  his 
father  patted  him  on  the  head  and  stroked  his 
cheek  ;  this  he  had  not  done  as  far  back  as  the 
boy  could  remember,  and  therefore  Thorbjorn 
grew  so  warm  about  his  heart  and  over  his 
whole  body  that  fear  melted  off  him  like  ice 
beneath  a  sunbeam.  He  did  not  know  how 
he  got  into  bed,  and  as  he  could  take  neither 
to  singing  nor  shouting,  he  folded  his  hands., 
said  Our  Father  six  times  forwards  and.  back- 
wards, quite  softly,  and  felt,  as  he  fell  asleep, 
that  there  was  no  one  on  God's  green  earth  he 
loved  so  dearly  as  his  father. 

The  next  day  he  awakened  in  a  terrible 
fright,  because  he  could  not  scream ;  for  he  wiJ*" 
now  to  have  a  thrashing,  after  all.  Wher 
opened  his  eyes,  he  became  aware,  to  his  great 
relief,  that  he  had  only  dreamed  it;  but  soon 
also  became  aware  that  some  one  else  was  just 
about  to  have  a  thrashing,  and  that  was  Aslak. 
Saemund  was  pacing  the  floor,  and  Thorbjorn 
well  knew  that  step.  The  rather  short  but 
square-built  man  looked  now  and  then  from 
under  his  bushy  brows  in  such  a  way  at  Aslak 
that  the  latter  felt  plainly  what  was  in  the 
wind  ;  Aslak  was  perched  on  the  top  of  a  great 
barrel,  from  the  side  of  which  his  legs  now 
dangled,  now  were  drawn    up.     As  usual,  he 


iO  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

had  his  hands  in  his  pockets  and  his  cap  drawn 
down  lightly  on  his  head,  so  that  the  matted 
locks  of  thick  black  hair  protruded  from  under 
the  fore-piece.  The  little  crooked  mouth  was 
more  crooked  than  ever ;  he  held  his  whole 
head  slightly  aslant,  and  looked  sideways  at 
Ssemund  from  beneath  his  half-closed  eyelids. 

"  Yes,  that  boy  of  yours  is  bad  enough," 
said  he  ;  "  but,  worse  still,  your  horse  is  troll- 
scared." 

Ssemund  paused.  "  You  are  a  fool  I  "  said 
he,  so  that  it  rang  through  the  room,  and  As- 
lak  drew  his  eyelids  more  closely  than  ever 
together. 

Saemund  strode  on  Hgain ;  Aslak  sat  still  a 
while. 

"  I  tell  you  he  is  troll-scared,"  repeated  he, 
and  stole  a  glance  after  him  to  see  what  effect 
that  had. 

"  No  ;  but  he  is  woods-scared,  —  that  is  what 
he  is,"  said  Ssemund,  moving  on.  "  You  felled  a 
tree  over  him  in  the  field,  you  careless  slouch, 
and  that  is  why  no  one  can  get  him  to  pass 
there  quietly  any  more." 

Aslak  listened  to  this  a  while. 

"  Well,  believe  so,  if  you  choose.  It  is  no 
disgrace  to  believe  a  thing.  But  I  doubt  if 
that  will  set  your  horse  right  again,"  he  added, 


synnOve  solbakken.  41 

at  the  same  time  drawing  himself  farther  back 
on  the  barrel,  and  shading  his  face  with  one 
hand.  Sssmund  came  right  over  to  him,  and 
said  in  a  low,  but  rather  dismal  tone, — 

"  You  are  a  wicked " 

"  Saemund  !  "  was  heard  from  the  hearth.  It 
was  Ingebjorg,  his  wife,  who  sat  there  hushing 
him  as  she  had  hushed  the  youngest  child,  who 
was  frightened,  and  had  wanted  to  scream. 
The  child  had  been  quieted  before,  and  now 
Saemund,  too,  was  silent ;  but  he  stuck  his  fist, 
which  was  a  very  small  one  for  such  a  square- 
built  man,  right  up  under  Aslak's  nose,  and 
held  it  there  a  while,  as  he  bent  forward  and 
fairly  scorched  the  boy's  face  with  his  eyes. 
Then  he  walked  on  as  before,  bestowing  on  him 
every  now  and  then  a  hasty  glance.  Aslak  was 
very  pale,  but  he  laughed  over  at  Thorbjdrn 
with  one  half  of  his  face,  while  he  kept  the 
half  turned  toward  Saemund  very  straight. 

"  Lord  grant  us  good  patience  !  "  he  ex 
claimed,  after  a  little  while  ;  but  at  the  same 
time  he  drew  up  his  elbow,  as  though  to  ward 
off  a  blow.  Saemund  stopped  suddenly,  and 
fthrieked  at  the  top  of  his  voice,  as  he  brought 
his  foot  down  on  the  floor,  so  that  Aslak  was 
completely  silenced,  — 

'  Do  not  you  dare  name  Him  !  " 


42  SYNNOVE   ftOLBAKKEN. 

Ingebjorg  arose  with  the  infant,  and  took 
Sffimund  gently  by  the  arm.  He  did  not  look 
at  her,  but  still  he  let  his  arm  drop.  She  went 
to  her  seat ;  he  walked  to  and  fro  once  more , 
but  neither  said  anything.  As  this  lasted  a 
while,  Aslak  had  to  break  the  silence  again  :  — 

"  Aye,  He  has  a  great  deal  to  do  at  Gran- 
liden,  —  that  He  has !  " 

"  Ssemund  !    Ssemund !  "  whispered  Ingebjorg, 

but  before  the  words  reached  hira  Ssemund  had 

already  rushed  at  Aslak,  who  thrust  out  his 

foot.     It  was   pushed  down,  the  fellow  seized 

by  it  and  his  jacket  collar,  lifted  up,  and  then 

set  against  the  closed  door  with  such  violence 

that  the  panel  gave  way,  and  he  went  through 

it  head  foremost.    The  wife,  Thorbjijrn,  and  all 

the  children  screamed  and  begged  for  him,  and 

the  whole  house  was  in  one  wail.    But  Sasmund 

darted  out  after  him,  not  remembering  to  open 

the  door  properly,   but  kicking  the  remainder 

Aside,  seized  hira  again,  carried  him  through 

the  passage  out  into  the  yard,  raised  him  high 

in  the  air,  and  flung  him  down  again  with  all 

his  might.     And  when  Ssemund  perceived  that 

there  was  too  much  snow  for  him  to  be  hurt 

badly  enough,  he  planted  his  knee  on  Aslak'a 

oreast  and  beat  him  right  in  his  face,  lifted 

him  the  third  time,  bore  him  to  a  place  that 


SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN  43 

was  more  free  from  snow,  like  a  wolf  that  is 
dragging  after  him  a  dog  he  has  been  tearing 
to  pieces,  let  him  fall  again,  and  this  time  more 
savagely  than  before,  then  sprang  on  him  with 
his  knees ;  and  no  one  knows  how  it  might 
have  ended  had  not  Ingebjorg  rushed  between 
with  the  infant  in  her  arms. 

"  Do  not  bring  ruin  upon  us  !  "  she  shrieked. 

A  while  later  Ingebjorg  sat  in  the  family 
room  ;  Thorbjorn  was  dressing;  the  father  was 
pacing  the  floor  once  more,  and  only  paused 
now  and  then  to  drink  a  little  water,  but  his 
hand  shook  so  that  the  water  flew  over  his  head 
and  splashed  on  the  floor.  Aslak  did  not  come 
in,  and  presently  Ingebjorg  made  a  movement 
to  go  out.  "  Stay  in,"  said  Sasmund,  as  though 
it  were  not  to  her  he  was  speaking ;  and  she 
stayed  in.  But  a  little  later  he  went  out  him- 
self. He  did  not  come  in  again.  Thoibjorn 
took  his  book  and  read  incessantly,  without 
looking  up,  although  he  did  not  understand  a 
single  sentence. 

A  little  later  in  the  forenoon  the  house  was 
in  the  old  order,  although  every  one  had  a  feel- 
ing as  though  strangers  had  been  visiting  them. 
Thorbjorn  ventured  to  go  out,  and  the  first  per- 
son he  met  outside  the  door  was  Aslak,  who  had 
packed  all  his  things  on  a  sled ;  but  the  sled 


>4  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

was  Thorbjoru's.  Thorbjorn  stared  at  him 
for  he  looked  ugly.  The  blood  had  dried  on 
his  face,  and  was  smeared  all  over  ;  he  coughed 
and  clutched  often  at  his  breast.  He  looked  for 
a  moment  silently  at  Thorbjorn,  and  then  he 
burst  out  violently,  — 

"  I  do  not  like  your  eyes,  boy !  " 

With  this  he  got  astride  of  the  sled,  seated 
himseK,  and  started  down  the  hill. 

"  You  can  get  your  sled  back  where  you  can 
find  it ! "  said  he,  and  laughed,  as  he  turned  once 
more  and  stuck  out  his  tongue  at  him.  Thus 
departed  Aslak. 

But  during  the  week  that  followed  the  lens- 
mand  ^  made  his  appearance  at  the  house ;  the 
father  was  sometimes  absent ;  the  mother  wept, 
and  she  also  was  away  several  times. 

"  What  is  it,  mother  ?  " 

"  Oh,  Aslak  is  the  cause  of  it  all  1 " 

One  day  they  caught  little  Ingrid,  as  she  sat 
and  sang :  — 

"  O  blessed  world,  I  am  weary 

Now  of  thy  doiugs  so  dreary  1 
Once  the  girl  puts  foot  in  sight, 

Reason  leaves  the  boy  outright ; 
Wat'ry  food  the  housewife  makes, 

Ease  her  lazy  husband  takes ; 
Puss  beyond  the  rest  is  keen  and  wily, 

For  cream  she  'a  stealing  so  slyly."  ' 

1  Bailiff. 

«  Auber  Forestier's  translation- 


SYNN6VE   SOLBAKKEN.  46 

There  was  of  course  a  query  as  to  whom  she 
could  have  learned  this  snatch  of  a  song  from. 
As  was  expected,  it  proved  to  be  from  Thor- 
bjorn.  He  became  much  alarmed,  and  said  he 
had  learned  it  from  Aslak.  He  was  then  made 
to  understand  that  if  he  sang  any  more  such 
verses  himself,  or  taught  them  to  his  sister,  he 
would  get  a  whipping.  Shortly  after  this  lit- 
tle Ingrid  happened  to  swear.  Thorbjorn  was 
again  called  up,  and  Saemund  thought  he  might 
as  well  give  him  a  taste  of  the  rod  now  ;  but  he 
cried  and  made  such  fair  promises  for  himself 
that  he  was  allowed  to  escape  this  time. 

The  next  Sunday  there  was  service,  his  father 
said  to  him,  "  You  will  not  have  any  chance  to 
get  into  mischief  at  home  to-day;  you  are  goiug 
vith  me  to  church." 


CHAPTER  n. 

The  church  stands,  in  the  peasant's  fancy,  on 
a  lofty  eminence,  apart  by  itself,  consecrated  to 
peace,  with  the  solemnity  of  the  grave  about  it, 
and  the  cheerfulness  of  the  mass  within.  It  is 
the  sole  house  in  the  valley  upon  which  he  has 
bestowed  any  ornamentation,  and  its  spire,  there- 
fore, actually  reaches  up  a  little  farther  than  it 
appears  to  reach.  Its  bells  greet  him  on  his 
way  thither,  of  a  bright  Sunday  morning,  and 
he  always  uncovers  his  head  to  them,  as  though 
he  would  return  with  thanks  their  greeting ! 
There  is  a  covenant  between  him  and  them 
which  no  one  can  fully  estimate.  Early  in  life 
he  doubtless  stood  by  the  open  door  and  heark- 
ened to  them,  while  the  church  people  moved 
past  in  silent  procession  down  on  the  road  ;  his 
father  was  getting  ready,  but  he  himself  was 
too  small  to  go.  He  combined  then  many 
ideas  with  those  heavy,  sonorous  tones  which 
reigned  supreme  among  the  mountains  for  an 
hour  or  two,  reechoing  from  one  to  the  other ; 
but  one  was  inseparably  connected  therewith 


synnOve  solbakken.  47 

clean,  new  clothes,  gay-clad  women,  and  well- 
groomed  horses,  with  bright  harnesses. 

And  when  these  bells  ring  thus  one  Sunday 
over  his  own  happiness ;  when  in  brand-new, 
but  too  large,  clothes  he  walks  with  dignified 
assurance  by  his  father's  side,  on  his  way  to 
church  for  the  first  time,  aye,  then  there  is  ex- 
ultation in  them.  Then,  surely,  they  can  fling 
open  all  the  doors  to  what  he  is  going  to  see. 
And  on  the  way  home,  when  they  still  keep  up 
their  clanging  over  his  head,  rocking  the  sing- 
ing, the  mass,  the  words  of  the  sermon,  in  their 
reverberations,  there  is  chased  back  and  forth 
what  engrossed  the  eye  during  the  service,  — 
the  altar-piece,  the  costumes,  the  people ;  then, 
once  for  all,  they  arch  over  the  previously  gath- 
ered impressions,  and  consecrate  the  smaller 
church  which  henceforth  he  bears  within  him. 

When  a  little  older,  he  has  to  tend  the  herds 
on  the  mountains,  but  of  a  fine,  dewy  Sunday 
morning,  as  he  sits  on  the  stone,  with  the  cattle 
below  him,  and  listens  to  the  church-bells  rising 
above  the  tinkle  of  their  bells,  he  grows  melan- 
choly. For  there  rings  through  them  some- 
thing bright,  cheerful,  alluring,  from  down  be- 
low :  thoughts  of  acquaintances  at  church  ;  of 
the  joy  when  one  is  there,  and  the  still  greater 
joy,  when  one  has  been  there,  of  the  good  dinner 


48  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

at  home;  of  father,  mother,  brothers,  and  sis- 
ters ;  of  the  merriment  on  the  green  in  the  glad 
Sunday  evening,  —  and  the  little  heart  rebels 
within  his  breast.  But  it  always  ends  with  the 
thought  that  those  were  the  church-bells  that 
were  ringing.  He  reflects  a  little,  and  finds 
stored  away  in  his  mind  a  fragment  of  some 
hymn  he  has  learned ;  this  he  sings,  hands 
folded,  and  eyes  peering  far  down  into  the 
valley  below,  repeats  a  little  prayer,  besides, 
springs  up,  feels  happy,  and  blows  such  a  blast 
on  his  loor  that  it  resounds  through  the  mount- 
ains. 

Here  in  the  little  mountain  valley  the  church 
has  its  special  language  for  each  age,  its  peculiar 
look  to  each  eye ;  much  may  have  been  built  up 
Detween  the  individual  and  it,  but  never  any- 
thing over  it.  It  stands  full-grown  and  ready, 
in  the  eyes  of  the  candidate  for  confirmation, 
with  finger  pointing  upward,  half  threatening, 
half  inviting,  for  the  youth  whose  choice  is 
made ;  broad-shouldered  and  strong  over  the 
sorrows  of  manhood  ;  with  plenty  of  room  and 
full  of  tenderness  for  weary  old  age.  During 
divine  service,  young  children  are  brought  in 
and  baptized,  and  it  is  well  known  that  during 
this  act  the  devotion  is  greatest. 

Therefore,  it  is  impossible  to  describe  Norse 


synnOve  solbakken.  49 

peasants,  corrupted  or  uncorrupted,  without 
coming  into  contact  at  one  point  or  other  with 
the  church.  There  will  seem  to  be  a  dull  uni- 
formity in  this  ;  but  it  is,  perhaps,  not  of  the 
worst  sort.  Let  this  be  said  once  for  all,  and 
not  especially  on  account  of  the  church  visit 
which  here  follows. 

Thorbjoru  rejoiced  at  the  thought  of  the 
walk  to  church  and  the  sights  he  was  to  see  ; 
his  eyes  were  dazzled  with  the  manifold  colors 
without  the  church ;  he  felt  the  weight  of  the 
stillness  which  hung  over  eveiybody  and  every- 
thing within  before  the  mass  began  ;  and  al- 
though he  did  not  remember  to  bow  his  head 
himself  when  the  prayer  was  read,  it  seemed  as 
though  it  were  bowed  by  the  sight  of  many  hun- 
dred bowed  heads.  The  singing  began,  and  all 
sang  at  once  around  him,  so  that  it  almost  ap- 
palled him.  So  absorbed  did  he  sit  there  that 
he  started  up  as  from  a  dream  when  their  pew 
door  was  softly  opened  for  some  one  who  came 
in.  After  the  singing  was  over  the  father  took 
this  new-comer  by  the  hand,  and  asked,  — 

«  Is  aU  well  at  Solbakken  ?  " 

Thorbjoru  raised  his  eyes  ;  but  whatever  he 

saw,  or  did  not  see,  there  was  little  connection 

to  be  traced  between  this  man  and  any  kind  of 

witchcraft.     He  was  a  gentle-looking,  fair-corn- 
4 


50  synnOve  solrakken. 

plexioned  man,  with  large  blue  eyes,  a  high 
brow,  and  he  looked  tall  in  his  seat ;  he  smiled 
when  he  was  spoken  to,  and  said  "  yes "  to 
every  remark  Ssemund  made,  but  was,  on  the 
whole,  a  man  of  few  words. 

"  If  you  look  over  there  you  will  see  Syn- 
nove,"  said  the  father,  as  he  stooped  down  to 
Thorbjorn,  took  him  on  his  knee,  and  pointed 
over  to  the  pew  opposite,  on  the  women's  side. 
There  was  a  little  girl  kneeling  on  the  bench 
and  looking  over  the  railing.  She  was  still 
fairer  than  the  man,  —  so  fair  that  he  had 
never  seen  her  equal.  She  had  a  red  streamer 
to  her  cap,  light  yellow  hair  beneath  this,  and 
now  smiled  at  him,  so  that  for  a  long  time  he 
could  not  see  anything  but  her  white  teeth. 
She  held  a  shining  hymn-book  in  one  hand,  and 
a  folded  orange-colored  silk  handkerchief  in  the 
other,  and  was  now  amusing  herself  by  strik- 
ing the  handkerchief  on  the  hymn-book.  The 
more  he  stared,  the  more  she  smiled  ;  and  now 
he  chose  also  to  kneel  on  the  bench,  just  aa 
she  was  doing.  Then  she  nodded.  He  looked 
gravely  at  her  a  moment,  then  he  nodded.  She 
smiled  and  nodded  once  more  ;  he  nodded  again, 
and  once  more,  and  still  once  more.  She  smiled, 
but  did  not  nod  any  more,  for  a  little  while, 
until  he  had  quite  forgotten  it ;  then  she  nod 
ded. 


synnOve  solbakicen.  61 

"  I  want  to  see,  too!  "  he  heard  behind  him, 
and  at  tlie  same  moment  felt  some  one  pull  him 
by  the  legs  to  the  floor,  so  that  he  came  near 
falling  ;  it  was  a  thick-set  little  fellow,  who  now 
scrambled  valiantly  up  into  Thorbjorn's  place. 
He,  too,  had  light,  but  bristling  hair,  and  a 
snub-nose.  Aslak  had  probably  taught  Thor- 
bjorn  how  the  bad  boys  he  met  at  church  and 
school  should  be  dealt  with.  Thorbjorn  there- 
fore pinched  the  boy  in  return  so  hard  that  he 
wanted  to  scream,  but  did  not,  and  crawled  in- 
stead very  quickly  down  from  the  bench,  and 
seized  Thorbjorn  by  both  ears.  The  latter 
made  a  grab  at  his  hair,  and  pulled  him  down 
under  himself  ;  still  the  boy  did  not  scream,  but 
bit  Thorbjorn  in  the  thigh.  Thorbjorn  drew  it 
back,  and  dashed  the  boy's  face  right  against 
the  floor.  Then  he  was  himself  seized  by  the 
jacket-collar,  and  lifted  up  as  though  he  were  a 
bag  full  of  straw  ;  it  was  his  father,  who  took 
Thorbjorn  on  his  lap. 

"  If  it  were  not  in  church,  you  would  get 
a  thrashing ! "  he  whispered  in  his  ear,  and 
squeezed  his  hand  so  that  it  hurt  clear  down  in 
his  foot.  He  remembered  Synnove,  and  looked 
over  at  her ;  she  was  still  there  on  her  knees, 
out  was  staring  before  her  with  such  a  vacant 
look  that  he  began  to  realize  what  he  had  done. 


52  synnOve  solbakken. 

and  that  it  must  be  something  very  wrong.  Aa 
soon  as  she  noticed  that  he  was  looking  at  her 
she  crept  down  from  the  bench,  and  was  no 
more  to  be  seen. 

The  chorister  came  forward,  and  then  the 
priest ;  he  listened  to  and  watched  them  closely. 
Again  the  chorister  came  forward,  and  again  the 
priest ;  but  still  he  sat  on  his  father's  knee,  and 
thought,  "  Will  she  not  soon  look  up  again  ?  " 
The  little  fellow  who  had  dragged  him  down 
from  the  bench  sat  on  a  foot-stool,  farther  up 
in  the  pew,  and  every  time  he  wanted  to  rise 
he  got  a  thrust  in  the  back  from  an  old  per- 
son, who  sat  and  nodded,  but  awakened  regu- 
larly every  time  the  child  made  a  move  to  rise. 
"  Will  she  not  soon  look  up  again  ?  "  thought 
Thorbjorn  ;  and  every  red  ribbon  he  saw  stir- 
ring round  about  reminded  him  of  the  one  she 
wore,  and  every  flashy  painting  in  the  old 
ohurch  was  either  just  as  large  as,  or  a  little 
smaller  than,  she.  Yes,  now  she  stretched  up 
her  head ;  but  as  soon  as  she  saw  him  she 
gravely  drew  it  down  again.  Once  more  the 
chorister  came  forward,  and  once  more  the 
priest ;  the  bell  was  rung,  and  every  one  arose. 
The  father  talked  again  in  a  low  tone  to  the 
fair-complexioned  man ;  they  went  together 
over  to  the  pew  where  the  women  were,  whq 


SYNNdVE    SOLBARKEN.  53 

had  already  arisen.  The  first  person  who  came 
out  from  there  was  a  fair-complexioned  woman, 
who  smiled  as  the  man  did,  but  more  faintly  ; 
she  was  rather  small  and  pale,  and  held  Syn- 
nove  by  the  hand.  Thorbjorn  went  right  over 
to  the  latter  ;  but  she  went  quickly  away  from 
him,  round  her  mother's  dress. 

"  Let  me  alone  !  "  said  she. 

"  This  little  boy  has  never  been  at  church 
before,"  said  the  fair  woman,  and  laid  her  hand 
on  him. 

"  No,  and  that  is  the  reason  why  he  got  to 
fighting  the  first  time,"  said  Saemund. 

Thorbjorn  looked  bashfully  up  at  her,  and 
then  at  Synnove,  who  seemed  to  him  graver  than 
ever.  They  all  went  out,  —  the  older  ones  in 
conversation,  but  Thorbjorn  following  Synnove, 
who  drew  closer  to  her  mother  whenever  he  ap- 
proached her.  The  other  boy  he  saw  no  more. 
Outside  of  the  church  they  paused,  and  began 
a  longer  conversation.  Thorbjorn  several  times 
heard  Aslak  named,  and  as  he  feared  they  might 
talk  a  little  about  him  also,  ut  the  same  time,  he 
retreated  a  few  steps. 

"This  is  not  for  you  to  hear!"  said  Synnove'a 
•nother  to  her.  "  Go  away  a  little,  ray  dear ;  go 
iway,  I  say." 

Synnove  drew  lingeringly  back.     Thorbjorn 


64  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

then  went  nearer  her,  and  looked  at  her,  and 
she  looked  at  him  ;  and  thus  they  stood  for  a 
long  while,  just  looking  at  each  other.  Finally 
she  said,  — 

"  Fy  I  " 

"  Why  do  you  say  fy  ?  "  asked  he. 

"  Fy  !  "  said  she  once  more.  "  Fy  I  For 
shame  !  "  she  added. 

"  Why,  what  have  I  done  ?  " 

"  You  have  been  fighting  in  church,  and  while 
the  priest  stood  there  saying  mass.     Fy  !  " 

"  Yes,  but  that  was  a  long  time  ago." 

This  made  an  impression  on  her,  and  she 
said  presently,  — 

"  Are  you  the  boy  whose  name  is  Thorbjorn 
Granliden  ?  " 

"  Yes  ;  and  is  it  you  they  call  Synnove  Sol- 
bakken  ?  " 

"  Yes.  I  have  always  heard  that  you  were 
such  a  good  boy." 

"  No,  that  is  not  true ;  for  I  am  the  worst 
one  of  all  of  us  at  home,"  said  Thorbjorn. 

"Well,  I  have  never  heard"  —  said  Synnove, 
and  clasped  her  small  hands.    "  Mother,  mother 
he  says "  — 

"  Hush  !  Be  quiet,  and  go  away  !  "  met  hei 
irom  that  quarter,  and  she  paused,  then  went 
plf)wly  and  l)ack wards  to  her  place,  her  large 
blue  eyes  fixed  on  her  mother. 


SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN.  55 

"  I  have  always  heard  that  you  were  good," 
said  Thorbjorn. 

"  Yes,  that  may  be  sometimes  when  I  have 
been  reading,"  she  replied. 

"  Is  it  true  that  you  have  such  a  lot  of  nisses 
and  trolls  and  other  bad  things  over  your  way  ?  " 
asked  he,  placing  his  hands  on  his  sides,  with 
one  foot  thrust  forward,  and  resting  on  the 
other,  just  as  he  had  seen  Aslak  do. 

"  Mother,  mother !  Do  you  know  what  he 
says  ?     He  says  "  — 

"  Let  me  alone  !  Do  you  hear  ?  And  do 
not  come  here  before  I  call  you  !  " 

She  had  to  retreat  again,  slowly  and  back- 
wards ;  as  she  did  so  she  put  a  corner  of  her 
handkerchief  in  her  mouth,  bit  it  hard,  and 
pulled  at  it. 

"Is  it  not  true  at  all  that  every  night  there 
is  music  inside  of  the  hills  over  there  ?  " 

"  No !  " 

"  Have  you  never  seen  trolls,  then  ?  " 

"No!" 

"  But,  in  the  name  of  Jesus  "  — 

'  Fy  !     You  must  not  say  that !  " 

"  Oh,  pshaw  !  —  that  is  nothing  !  "  said  he, 
spitting  between  his  teeth  to  show  how  far  he 
could  spit. 

"  Yes,  it  is,"  she  replied  ;  "  for  if  you  talk  so 
vou  will  go  to  hell." 


60  SVNNOVE   SOLRAKKEN. 

"Do  you  think  so?"  asked  he,  decidedly 
more  humble ;  for  he  had  only  thought  that  he 
might  get  a  whipping  for  it,  and  his  father 
was  now  standing  so  far  away.  "  Who,  for  in- 
stance, is  the  strongest  over  your  way?"  asked 
he,  and  pushed  his  cap  a  little  more  to  one 
side. 

"  I  am  sure  I  do  not  know," 

"  Well,  over  our  way  it  is  father.  He  is  so 
strong  that  he  thrashes  Aslak ;  and  Aslak  is 
strong,  I  can  tell  you." 

"  Ah,  indeed  !  " 

"  Once  he  lifted  a  horse." 

"  A  horse  ?  " 

"  Yes  ;  that  is  as  true,  as  true  —  for  he  told 
me  so  himself." 

Then  she  could  have  no  doubts,  either. 

"  Who  is  Aslak  ?  "  asked  she. 

"  He  is  a  very  bad  boy,  I  can  assure  you. 
Father  whipped  him  so  hard  that  in  the  whole 
world  there  never  was  any  one  whipped  so  hard 
before." 

"  Do  you  fight  over  there  at  your  house  ?  " 

"  Yes,  sometimes,  when  —  Do  not  you  do 
10  over  at  your  house  ?  " 

"  No,  never." 

"  What  do  you  do  there,  then  ?  " 

**  Oh,  mother  gets  the  meals  ready,  knits,  and 


SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN.  57 

lews ;  Kari  d<,)es  these  things,  too,  but  not  as 
well  as  mother,  for  Kari  is  so  lazy.  But  Randi 
takes  care  of  the  cows ;  father  and  the  boys  work 
out  in  the  field,  or  else  keep  busy  at  home." 
This  seemed  to  him  a  satisfactory  explanation. 
"Then  every  evening  we  read  and  we  sing,"  she 
continued,  "  and  we  do  so  on  Sundays,  too." 
"  All  of  you  ?  " 

"  Yes." 

"  That  must  be  tedious." 

"  Tedious  ?  Mother,  he  says  "  —  but  then 
she  remembered  that  it  was  forbidden  her  to 
bother  her  mother.  "  Oh,  you  had  better  be- 
lieve I  own  ever  so  many  sheep,"  said  she. 

"  Do  you  ?  " 

"Yes.  Three  of  them  are  going  to  have 
lambs  this  winter,  and  one  of  them,  I  am  quite 
Bui"e,  will  have  two." 

"  And  so  you  have  sheep,  have  you  ?  " 

"  Yes ;  and  I  have  cows  and  pigs,  too.  Have 
you  none  ?  " 

"  No." 

"  If  you  will  come  over  to  see  me,  you  shall 
have  a  lamb.  Then  you  will  surely  get  more 
irom  it." 

"  That  would  be  too  nice  for  anytblng." 

They  were  silent  for  a  while.  "  Cannot  In- 
(jrid  have  a  lamb,  too  ?  "  asked  he. 


&8  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKKN. 

"  Whoislngi-id?" 

"  Why,  Ingrid,  —  little  Ingrid." 

No,  she  did  not  know  her. 

"  Is  she  smaller  than  you  ?  " 

"  Yes,  of  course  she  is  smaller  than  I,  —  just 
about  like  you." 

"  Oh,  dear  me  I    You  must  bring  her  along 
do  you  hear  ?  " 

Yes,  he  would  do  so. 

"  But,"  said  she,  "  if  you  get  a  lamb,  she  can 
have  a  pig." 

This  he,  too,  thought  was  far  wiser ;  and  then 
they  talked  a  little  about  their  common  ac- 
quaintances, of  whom,  to  be  sure,  they  had  not 
many.  Their  parents  were  now  ready,  and  they 
must  go  home. 

That  night  he  dreamed  about  Solbakken,  and 
lie  thought  he  saw  only  white  Iambs  over  there, 
and  a  little  fair  girl  with  red  ribbons  in  the 
midst  of  them.  Ingrid  and  he  talked  every 
single  day  about  going  to  Solbakken.  They 
had  so  many  lambs  and  little  pigs  to  tend  that 
they  knew  not  which  way  to  turn  among  them. 
Meanwhile,  they  wondered  greatly  that  they 
could  not  go  over  there  at  once. 

"  Just  because  that  little  girl  asked  you  ?  ' 
«aid  the  mother.    "  Did  you  ever  hear  the  like  I ' 

"  Never  mind  ;  you  just  wait  till  the  nex* 


SYNNOVE   SOU'.AKKEN.  59 

Sunday  there  is  service,"  thought   Thorbjom 
"  and  then  you  shall  see." 

It  came. 

"  You  are  said  to  be  so  bad  about  boasting 
and  lying  and  swearing,"  said  Synnove  to  him, 
"  that  you  cannot  be  allowed  to  come  until  you 
have  stopped  your  bad  habits." 

"  Who  says  so  ?  "  asked  Thorbjorn,  surprised. 

"  Mother." 

Ingrid  waited  in  suspense  for  his  coming 
home,  and  he  told  her  and  the  mother  what 
had  happened. 

"  Now  you  see  !  "  said  the  mother.  Ingrid 
said  nothing ;  but  after  this  both  she  and  the 
mother  reminded  him  every  time  he  swore  or 
boasted.  Ingrid  and  he,  meanwhile,  fell  into  a 
quarrel  about  whether  "  the  dog  take  me  "  was 
swearing  or  not.  Ingrid  got  a  whipping,  and 
after  that  he  kept  using  "  the  dog  take  me"  the 
whole  day.  But  toward  evening  his  father 
heard  it.  "  Yes,  he  shall  take  you  1 "  said  he, 
and  gave  him  a  blow  that  sent  him  reeling. 
Thorbjorn  felt  most  ashamed  before  Ingrid,  but 
after  a  little  while  she  came  over  to  him  and 
patted  him. 

A  few  months  later  they  both  made  a  visit 
\o  Solbakken ;  Synnove  afterward  came  to  visit 
^hem :  they  over  to  Solbakken  again    and  thus 


60  SVNMOVE   SOLBAKICEN. 

it  continued  all  the  while  they  were  growing 
up.  Thorbjoru  and  Synnove  were  rivals  in  their 
studies  ;  they  went  to  the  same  school,  and  he 
became  at  last  the  more  clever  scholar  of  the 
two,  —  so  clever  that  the  priest  interested  him- 
self in  him.  Ingrid  did  not  get  on  so  well ;  and 
both  the  others  therefore  helped  her.  She  and 
Synnove  became  so  inseparable  that  people 
called  them  the  "  ptarmigans,"  because  they 
always  flew  together,  and  both  had  very  fair 
hair  and  complexions. 

It  happened,  occasionally,  that  Synnove  got 
angry  with  Thorbjorn,  because  he  was  so  ex- 
citable and  fell  into  so  many  squabbles,  Ingrid 
always  acted  as  peacemaker,  and  then  they  be- 
came good  friends  again  as  before.  But  if  Syn- 
niive's  mother  heard  of  his  fighting,  he  was  not 
allowed  to  come  to  Solbakken  that  week,  and 
hardly  the  next.  No  one  dared  tell  Saemund 
anything  about  such  things  ;  "  he  is  so  severe 
with  the  lad,"  said  his  wife,  and  imposed  silence 
upon  all. 

As  they  grew  up,  all  three  became  good-look- 
jiiig,  although  each  in  his  own  way.  Synnove 
grew  tall  and  slender,  had  flaxen  hair,  a  finely 
moulded,  bright  face,  with  calm  blue  eyes 
When  she  spoke,  she  smiled,  and  people  sooa 
said  it  was  a  blessing  to  come  within  the  atmos 


synnOve  solbakken.  61 

phere  of  her  smiles.  Ingrid  was  smaller,  but 
stouter,  had  still  lighter  hair,  and  a  very  little 
face  that  was  soft  and  round.  Thorbjorn  be- 
came of  medium  height,  but  was  extremely  well 
formed,  had  dark  hair,  dark  blue  eyes,  a  sharply 
cut  face,  and  strong  limbs.  He  had  a  habit  of 
saying  of  himself,  when  he  was  angry,  that  he 
could  read  and  write  just  as  well  as  the  school- 
master, and  feared  no  man  in  the  valley,  —  ex- 
cept his  father,  he  thought,  but  he  did  not  add 
that. 

Thorbjorn  wished  to  be  confirmed  early  ;  but 
that  could  not  be.  "  As  long  as  you  are  not 
confirmed  you  are  only  a  boy,  and  I  can  better 
control  you  !  "  said  his  father.  So  it  chanced 
that  he,  Synnove,  and  Ingrid  went  to  the  priest 
at  the  same  time.  Synnove,  too,  had  waited  un 
usually  long ;  she  was  fifteen,  in  her  sixteenth 
year.  "  We  never  can  know  enough  when  we 
come  to  make  our  confirmation  vow,"  her 
mother  had  always  said  ;  and  her  father,  Gut- 
torm  Solbakken,  had  answered  "  yes  "  to  this. 
So  it  was  not  strange  that  a  couple  of  suitors 
began  to  put  in  an  appearance :  one  the  son  of 
people  of  the  better  class,  another  a  rich  neigh- 
bor. 
"  It  is  too  bad !  She  is  not  yet  confirmed  1 " 
"  Well,  then,  we  must  have  her  confirmed.' 


62  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

Baid  the  father.     But   Synnove   herself   knew 
nothing  of  this. 

At  the  parsonage,  the  ladies  of  the  priest's 
family  thought  so  well  of  Synnove  that  they  in- 
vited her  in,  to  talk  with  her.    Ingrid  and  Thor- 
bjorn  waited  outside  among  the  rest,  and  when  a 
boy  said  to  the  latter,  "  So  you  did  not  get  in 
with  her  ?     They  are  surely  going  to  take  her 
away  from  you  !  "  it  cost  that  boy  a  black  eye. 
From  this  time  forth,  it  got  to  be  a  habit  among 
the  other  boys  to  tease  him  about  Synnove,  and 
it  became   apparent  that  nothing  could  throw 
him  into  a  greater  rage.     In  a  grove  below  the 
parsonage  there  took  place,  at  last,  by  agree- 
ment, a  big  fight,  which  had  this  teasing  for  its 
cause ;  the  fight  had  grown  to  such  an  extent 
that  Thorbjorn  had  to  deal  with  a  whole  crowd 
at  once.     The  girls  had  gone  on  in  advance,  so 
there  was  no  one  to  part  them,  and  the  fight 
grew,  therefore,  worse  and  worse.     He  did  not 
want  to  give  up ;  several  attacked  him  at  once, 
and  so  he  defended  himself  as  best  he  could, 
and  the   blows   he  dealt   about   him  betrayed 
afterwards  what  had  taken  place.     The  cause 
came  out  at  the  same  time,  and  it  made  a  great 
deal  of  talk  in  the  parish. 

The   next  Sunday  there  was  service  Thor- 
bjorn would  not  go  to  church ;  and  the  next  day 


synnOve  solbakkkn.  68 

tliey  were  to  go  to  the  priest  he  feigned  illness. 
And  so  IngriJ  went  alone.  He  asked  her,  on 
her  return  home,  what  Synnove  had  said. 

"  Nothing." 

When  he  joined  the  others  again,  he  thought 
that  every  one  looked  at  him,  and  that  the  rest 
of  the  class  giggled.  But  Synnove  came  later 
than  the  others,  and  passed  much  time  with  the 
priest's  family  that  day.  He  feared  a  scolding 
from  the  priest,  but  soon  became  aware  that  the 
only  two  in  the  parish  who  knew  nothing  of  tiie 
fight  were  his  own  father  and  the  priest.  This 
matter  was  not  so  bad,  after  all ;  but  how  he 
should  gain  access  to  Synnove  again,  he  knew 
not,  for  it  was  the  first  time  that  he  did  not 
really  like  to  ask  Ingrid  to  intercede.  After 
the  recitation  was  over,  Synnove  was  again  in 
at  the  priest's  ;  he  waited  as  long  as  there  was 
any  cue  else  in  the  grounds,  but  at  last  he  too 
had  to  go.     Ingrid  had  gone  among  the  first. 

The  next  day,  Synnove  had  come  before  all 
the  others,  and  was  walking  in  the  garden  with 
one  of  the  young  ladies  and  a  young  gentleman. 
The  young  lady  took  up  some  flowering  plants, 
and  gave  them  to  Synnove  ;  the  gentleman  as- 
sisted ;  and  Thorbjorn  stood  among  the  rest 
outside,  and  looked  on.  They  explained  to  her 
qjuite  loud,  so  they  all  heard  it,  how  these  plants 


64  svnnOve  solbakken. 

were  to  be  set  out,  and  Synnove  promised  to 
attend  to  them  herself,  that  everything  might 
be  just  as  they  said.  "  You  cannot  do  it  alone,' 
said  the  gentleman,  and  Thorbjoru  pondered 
oyer  this.  When  Synnove  came  out  to  the  oth- 
ers, they  showed  far  more  respect  for  her  than 
usual,  but  Synnove  went  over  to  Ingrid,  greeted 
her  gently,  and  asked  her  to  accompany  her 
down  to  the  green.  There  they  seated  them- 
selves, for  it  was  long  since  they  had  had  a 
good  talk  together.  Thorbjoru  again  was  left 
with  the  others,  and  looked  at  Synnove's  pretty, 
strange  flowers. 

That  day  Synnove  went  at  the  same  time  as 
the  rest.  "  May  I  carry  your  flowers  for  you  ?  " 
said  Thorbjoru. 

"  Yes,  if  you  like,"  she  answered,  kindly,  but 
without  looking  at  him,  and  taking  Ingrid  by 
the  hand,  went  on  ahead.  At  the  foot  of  Sol- 
bakken  she  paused,  and  bade  Ingrid  farewell. 
"  I  can  carry  them  myself  the  short  distance 
that  remains,"  said  she,  and  took  up  the  basket 
Thorbjorn  had  set  down.  The  whole  way  he 
had  been  thinking  about  offering  to  plant  the 
flowers  for  her,  but  now  he  could  not  muster 
the  courage,  for  she  turned  away  so  abruptly. 
Bat  afterwards  he  thought  of  nothing  else  ex 
cept  that  he,  still,  ought  to  have  helped  hei 
with  those  flowers. 


synnovp:  solbakken.  65 

"  What  were  you  two  talking  about  ?  "  he 
asked  Ingrid. 

"  About  nothing." 

When  the  rest  were  well  in  bed,  he  quietly- 
dressed  himself  again  and  went  out.  It  was  a 
beautiful  evening,  balmy  and  still ;  the  sky  was 
faintly  overcast  with  bluish -gray  clouds,  here 
and  there  torn  asunder,  so  that  it  seemed  as 
though  some  one  might  be  peering  out  from 
the  dark  blue  as  from  an  eye.  No  one  was  to 
be  seen  about  the  houses  or  farther  away ;  but 
the  grasshoppers  were  chirping  all  through 
the  grass,  a  rail  piping  on  the  right  was  an- 
swered on  the  left,  and  then  there  began  a 
singing  in  the  grass  from  place  to  place,  so  that 
it  seemed  to  the  wandei'er  as  though  he  were 
attended  by  a  large  company  of  followers,  al- 
though he  did  not  see  a  single  one.  The  forest 
stretched  upwards,  now  blue,  now  dark  and 
still  darker  toward  the  rocky  waste,  and  looked 
like  a  great  sea  of  mist.  But  thioiigh  this  he 
heard  the  heath-cock  strike  up  its  note,  a  single 
owl  shriek,  and  the  force  chant  its  old,  vigorous 
rhymes  louder  than  ever,  now  that  all  had  set- 
tled down  to  give  ear  thereto.  Thorbjorn 
looked  over  toward  Solbakken,  and  went  on- 
ward. He  turned  off  from  the  usual  path, 
quickly  reached  the  gard,  and  very  soon  stood 


66  synnOve  solbakkex. 

in  the  little  garden  that  belonged  to  Synnove, 
and  that  lay  directly  beneath  the  one  loft  win- 
dow he  knew  so  well,  that  of  the  chamber 
in  which  she  slept.  He  listened  and  peered 
around,  but  all  was  still.  Then  he  searched 
about  the  garden  for  working  implements,  and 
sure  enough  there  he  found  both  spade  and  hoe. 
The  spading  of  a  bed  had  been  commenced  ; 
only  a  small  corner  was  finished,  but  in  it  two 
plants  were  already  set  out,  probably  to  see 
how  they  looked.  ''  She  became  tired,  poor  girl, 
and  left  it,"  he  thought.  "  It  takes  a  man  to 
do  this,"  he  thought  further,  and  set  to  work. 
He  did  not  feel  the  slightest  desire  for  sleep; 
indeed,  it  even  seemed  to  him  that  he  had  never 
performed  so  easy  a  task.  He  remembered  how 
they  were  to  be  set  out,  remembered  also  the 
parsonage  garden,  and  planted  them  accord- 
ingly. Night  passed  away,  but  he  was  not 
aware  of  it ;  he  scarcely  paused  to  rest,  and  had 
the  whole  bed  spaded,  the  flowers  set  out,  one 
here  and  there  planted  over  again  to  give  a 
better  effect,  and  ever  and  anon  he  would  steal 
a  glance  up  at  the  chamber  window  to  see 
whether  any  one  was  watching  him.  But 
neither  there  nor  elsewhere  was  any  one  to  be 
seen,  nor  did  he  hear  so  much  as  the  barking 
of  a  dog  before  the  cock  began  to  crow,  awaken 


SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN.  67 

ing  the  forest  birds,  who  then,  one  after  another, 
piped  up  their  "  good-morning  "  song.  While 
he  Etood  there  patting  down  the  earth  around, 
the  bed,  he  thought  of  the  tales  Aslak  had  told 
him,  and  how  once  he  had  believed  that  trolls 
and  nisses  grew  over  at  Solbakken.  He  looked 
up  at  Synnove's  window,  and  smiled,  as  he 
wondered  what  she  would  think  now  in  the 
morning  hour.  It  had  become  pretty  light,  the 
birds  were  already  making  a  terrible  racket, 
and  so  he  leaped  over  the  fence  and  hastened 
home.  No  one  should  be  able  to  say  that  it 
was  he  who  had  been  there  and  set  out  flowers 
in  iSynnove  So.bakken's  garden. 


CHAPTER   III. 

Soon  all  kinds  of  things  were  said  in  the 
parish  ;  but  no  one  knew  anything  with  cer- 
tainty. Thorbjorn  was  not  seen  any  more  at 
Solbakken  after  he  and  Synnove  were  confirmed, 
and  this  was  what  people  could  least  under- 
stand. Ingrid  often  went  over  there  ;  Synnove 
and  she  would  then  usually  take  a  walk  in  the 
wood.  "  Do  not  stay  away  too  long ! "  the  mother 
would  call  after  them.  "  Oh,  no,"  Synnove 
would  answer,  and  not  come  home  before  the 
dusk  of  the  evening.  The  two  suitors  presented 
themselves  anew.  "  She  will  have  to  attend  to 
the  matter  herself,"  said  the  mother;  the  father 
thought  the  same.  But  when  Synnove  was 
taken  aside  and  questioned,  they  were  rejected. 
Then  several  others  made  their  appearance,  but 
no  one  heard  that  they  brought  good  luck  home 
with  them  from  Solbakken.  Once,  when  her 
mother  and  she  stood  scouring  some  wooden 
milk-pans,  the  mother  asked  whom  it  was  she 
was  really  thinking  about.  The  question  came 
so  suddenly  upon  her  that  she  blushed.     "  Have 


SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN.  69 

yon  given  any  one  a  promise  ? "  the  mother 
asked,  and  fixed  her  eyes  on  her.  "  No,"  an- 
swered Synuove,  promptly.  There  was  noth- 
ing further  said  upon  the  subject. 

As  she  was  the  best  match  in  the  parish, 
she  was  followed  by  eager  eyes  when  she  ap- 
peared at  church,  the  only  place  where  she  was 
to  be  seen  outside  of  her  own  home ;  that  is 
to  say,  she  was  never  found  at  any  dance  or 
other  merry-malcing,  because  her  parents  were 
Haugians.  Thorbjorn  sat  directly  opposite  her 
at  church,  but  they  never  talked  together,  so 
far  as  people  could  observe.  Nevertheless,  each 
and  every  one  felt  assured  that  there  must  be 
something  between  them ;  and  as  they  did  not 
go  about  together  in  the  same  way  as  other 
young  lovers  in  the  valley,  there  began  to  be  a 
great  deal  of  talk.  Thorbjorn  did  not  seem  to 
be  much  liked.  He  probably  felt  this  himself  ; 
for  he  was  pretty  rough  in  his  conduct  when 
several  were  together,  as,  for  example,  at  dances 
and  weddings ;  and  so  it  happened  that  now 
and  then  he  would  rush  into  a  fight.  There 
came  a  lull,  however,  after  several  had  learned 
how  strong  he  was  ;  and  so  Thorbjorn  early 
formed  the  habit  not  to  brook  having  any  one 
stand  the  least  in  his  way.  "  You  are  now  re- 
Bponsible  to  yourself  alone,"  said  Saemund,  his 


TO  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

father ;  "  but  you  will  do  well  to  remember  that 
perhaps  I  am  stronger  than  you." 

Autumn  and  winter  passed  away;  spring 
came,  and  still  people  knew  nothing  definite. 
There  were  circulated  so  many  rumors  con- 
cerning the  refusals  Synnove  had  given  that 
her  company  almost  ceased  to  be  sought.  But 
Ingrid  was  her  constant  companion.  They  two 
were  to  go  together  to  the  saeter  ^  this  year, 
the  Solbakkeu  family  having  purchased  a  share 
in  the  Granlid  saiter.  Thorbjoru  was  heard 
singing  up  in  the  mountains,  for  he  was  get 
ting  ready  one  thing  and  another  for  them. 

One  beautiful  day,  when  it  was  already  draw- 
ing toward  evening,  and  his  work  was  done,  he 
sat  down  to  think  matters  over.  His  thoughts 
probably  dwelt  chiefly  upon  what  was  being 
talked  of  in  the  parish.  He  laid  himself  on 
his  back  in  the  red  and  brown  heather,  and 
with  hands  under  his  head  he  fell  to  gazing  up 
at  the  sky,  which  moved  so  blue  and  glittering 
above  the  dense  tree-tops.  The  green  leaves 
and  pine  needles  flowed  out  over  it  in  a  quiver- 
ing stream,  and  the  dark  branches  which  cut 
through  this  made  strange,  wild  designs  therein. 
But  the  sky  itself  could  only  be  seen  when  a 
leaf  was  wafted  aside;  farther  away,  through 

1  The  moantain  pasture. 


synnovp:  solbakken.  71 

the  tree- lops,  which  did  nut  touch  one  another, 
it  burst  forth  like  a  broad  river,  in  whimsical 
oscillations,  and  flowed  over.  This  attuned  his 
mood,  and  he  began  to  think  of  what  he  saw. 

The  birch  laughed  again,  with  its  thousand 
eyes,  up  at  the  spruce ;  the  fir  stood  there  with 
silent  contempt,  its  spikes  bristling  on  every 
side,  for  as  the  breeze  gradually  became  more 
caressing,  more  and  more  of  the  saplings  quick- 
ened, darted  upward,  and  thrust  their  fresh  foli- 
age right  under  the  nose  of  the  fir.  "  Where 
were  you,  I  wonder,  last  winter?  "  inquired  the 
fir,  waving  to  and  fro,  and  perspiring  rosin,  in 
an  intolerable  heat.  "  This  is  almost  too  bad  ! 
—  so  far  to  the  north.     Whew  !  " 

But  then  there  was  an  old,  gray,  bald  fir,  that, 
tov/ering  above  all  the  others,  could  still  reach 
down  a  many-fingered  branch,  almost  perpen- 
dicularly, and  seize  a  courageous  linden  by  its 
topmost  poll,  and  make  it  shiver  clear  down  to 
its  knees.  This  fathom-thick  fir  had  had  its 
branches  lopped  by  man,  higher  and  higher  up, 
until  at  last,  weary  and  disgusted,  it  suddenly 
shot  so  far  upward  that  the  slender  spruce  at 
its  side  became  frightened,  and  asked  whether 
it,  too,  remembered  winter's  storms. 

"  Do  I  remember  them  ?  "  said  the  fir,  and 
with   the   aid    of    the   north    wind   boxed   the 


72  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

spruce's  ears  so  smartly  that  it  was  not  far  fiom 
losing  its  balance,  and  that  was  bad  enough. 
The  large-lirabed,  dusky-hued  fir  had  now 
planted  such  a  mighty  foot  in  the  ground  that 
its  toes  stuck  out  at  least  six  yards  off,  and 
were  even  thicker  than  the  thickest  part  of  the 
willow,  as  the  latter  shyly  whispered,  one  even- 
ing, to  the  love-sick  hop-vine  that  twined  it- 
self up  over  it.  The  bearded  fir  was  conscious 
of  its  power,  and  said  to  man,  as  far  beyond  his 
reach  it  put  forth  branch  after  branch,  "  Strip 
me  if  you  can  !  " 

"  No,  they  cannot  strip  you  !  "  said  the  eagle, 
as  he  graciously  alighted  on  the  fir,  folded  his 
wings  with  dignity,  and  brushed  some  miserable 
sheep's  blood  off  his  feathers.  "  I  really  think 
I  shall  ask  the  queen  to  settle  here ;  she  has 
some  eggs  she  must  lay,"  he  added  more  softly, 
and  looked  down  at  his  bald  legs  ;  for  he  was 
ashamed  because  there  came  rushing  over  him 
a  quantity  of  tender  memories  of  those  earliest 
spring  days,  during  which  one  is  apt  to  become 
rather  foolish  with  the  first  warmth  of  the  sun. 
Soon  he  raised  his  head  again,  and  gazed  from 
beneath  his  feather-shaded  brows  up  into  the 
dark  mountain  waste,  in  order  to  see  whether 
the  queen,  egg-laden  and  suffering,  might  not 
be  sailing  about  there.     Off  he  then  flew,  and 


SYNNCiVE   SOLBAKKEN.  73 

the  fir  could  soon  see  the  pair  far  away  tov^ard 
the  clear,  blue  ether,  where  they  were  sailing 
as  high  as  the  loftiest  mountain  peak,  and  were 
discussing  their  household  concerns.  It  cannot 
be  denied  that  the  fir  was  a  trifle  anxious  ;  for, 
proud  though  it  felt,  it  would  be  still  prouder 
to  get  a  brace  of  young  eagles  to  cradle.  The 
pair  came  down,  and  directly  to  it.  They  did 
not  speak  to  each  other,  but  set  right  to  work 
to  fetch  twigs.  The  fir  expanded,  if  possible, 
more  than  ever;  nor  was  there  any  one  who 
could  hinder  it  from  doing  this. 

But  through  the  rest  of  the  forest  there  was 
a  busy  chatter,  when  it  was  seen  what  honor 
had  been  bestowed  on  the  great  fir.  Thus  there 
was  a  small,  comely  birch  that  stood  mirroring 
itself  in  a  pond,  and  thought  it  had  a  right  to 
expect  a  little  love  from  a  gray  wagtail  that 
was  in  the  habit  of  tiiking  a  noonday  nap  on 
its  branches.  It  had  buried  the  wagtail  in  fra- 
grance clear  up  to  its  beak ;  it  had  covered 
its  leaves  with  insects,  so  that  they  were  easy 
enough  to  catch  ;  nay,  finally  it  had,  in  the  heat, 
built  and  bent  together  a  well-sheltered  little 
house  of  twigs,  thatched  with  fresh  leaves,  so 
that  the  wagtail  really  was  about  to  establish  it- 
self there  for  the  summer.  Now,  however,  the 
eagle  had  taken  up  his  abode  in  the  great  fir, 


74  synnOve  solpakken. 

and  off  it  must  go.  Here,  indeed,  was  sorrow  1 
It  trilled  out  a  parting  song,  but  very  softly, 
that  the  eagle  might  not  notice  it. 

Some  small  sparrows,  in  the  alder  bush  yon- 
der, did  not  fare  much  better.  They  had  kept 
up  such  a  clatter  that  a  thrush,  up  in  an  ash 
hard  by,  had  never  got  to  sleep  at  the  right 
time,  had  become  furiously  angry  sometimes, 
and  had  made  a  fuss.  A  solemn  woodpecker 
in  the  neighboring  tree  had  laughed  until  it 
had  almost  lost  its  footing.  But  then  the  eagle 
was  seen  in  the  great  fir !  and  the  thrush  and 
the  little  sparrows  and  the  woodpecker,  and 
every  creature  that  had  wings,  must  be  off  in 
a  great  hurry,  over  and  under  the  branches. 
The  thrush  had  sworn,  as  he  flew  away,  that 
he  would  never  again  take  a  house  where  he 
had  sparrows  for  neighbors. 

So  the  whole  forest  stood  there,  forsaken,  and 
musing  amidst  the  cheerful  sunshine.  It  was 
to  have  all  its  joy  in  the  great  fir,  but  that  was 
a  poor  joy.  The  forest  bowed  down  anxiously 
every  time  the  north  wind  stirred,  the  great  fii 
beat  the  air  with  its  mighty  branches,  and  the 
eagle  flew  in  a  circle  around  it,  calm  and  com- 
posed, as  though  this  were  merely  a  creeping 
puff  of  wind,  that  was  bearing  upward  some 
paltry  perfumes  from  the  forest.    But  the  whole 


synnOve  solbakken.  75 

fir  family  was  glad.     Not  one  remembered  that 
it  would  get  no  nest  to  rock  this  year. 

"  Away  !  "  said  the  fir-trees ;  "  we  are  of  the 
same  family." 

"  What  are  you  lying  tnere  and  thinking 
about?"  asked  Ingrid,  who  smilingly  advanced 
from  between  some  shrubs  she  was  bending 
aside. 

Thorbjoru  started  up. 

"  Oh,  so  many  things  can  play  in  one's 
mind,"  said  he,  and  gazed  defiantly  over  the 
trees.  "  Besides,  there  is  so  much  talk  in  the 
parish,  in  these  days,"  he  added,  as  he  brushed 
some  dust  from  his  clothes. 

"  Why  do  you  always  trouble  yourself  so 
much  about  what  people  say  ?  " 

"  Oh,  I  do  not  know,  exactly  ;  but  —  people 
have  never  yet  said  anything  that  was  not  in 
my  mind,  whether  it  was  in  ray  actions  or  not." 

"  That  is  a  naughty  thing  to  say." 

"  So  it  is,"  said  he.  Presently  he  added, 
"  But  it  is  true." 

She  sat  down  on  the  greensward  ;  he  stood 
with  his  eyes  fixed  on  the  ground. 

"  I  can  easily  become  what  they  want  me 
to  be ;  they  had  better  let  me  be  as  I  am." 

"  Then  it  really  is  your  own  fault,  after  all  " 


76  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

"  That  may  be,  but  the  rest  have  a  share 
in  it.  I  tell  you,  I  want  peace  ! "  he  almost 
shouted,  and  looked  up  at  the  eagle. 

"  Why,  Thorbjorn  !  "  whispered  Ingrid. 

He  turned  toward  her,  and  laughed. 

"  Hush  !  hush  !  "  said  he.  "  As  I  told  you, 
many  things  can  play  in  one's  mind.  Have 
you  spoken  with  Synnove  to-day  ?  " 

"  Yes.    She  has  already  gone  to  the  saeter." 

"  To-day  ?  " 

"  Yes." 

"  With  the  Solbakken  cattle  ?  " 

"  Yes." 

"Tralala! 
The  sun  does  his  tree  afar  behold, 

Triumlire! 
'  Art  thou  there,  O  thou,  my  own  glittering  gold? ' 
Triurnlit,  triumling! 
Wakes  the  bird,  with  a  spring. 
'What  is  the  matter?'" 

"  To-morrow  we  let  loose  our  cattle,"  said 
Ingrid.  She  wanted  to  turn  his  thoughts  in 
another  direction. 

"  I  am  to  go  along  and  drive  them !  "  said 
rhorbjorn. 

"  No,  father  wants  to  go  himself." 

"  Ah,  indeed  !  "  observed  he,  and  was  silent. 

"  He  asked  for  you  to-day,"  said  she. 

'  Did  he  ?  "  said  Thorbjorn,  and  cutting  off 
a  twig  with  his  sheath  knife,  he  began  to  strip 
the  bark  from  it. 


SYNN6VE   SOLBAKKEN.  77 

"•  You  should  talk  more  with  father  than 
you  do,"  said  she,  gently.  ^'  He  thinks  a  great 
deal  of  you,"  she  added. 

"  That  may  be  so,"  replied  he. 

"  He  often  talks  of  you  when  you  are  out." 

"All  the  less  frequently  wlien  I  am  in." 

«  That  is  your  fault." 

"Perhaps  it  is." 

"You  must  not  talk  so,  Thorbjorn;  you  knew 
very  well  what  there  is  between  you." 

"  What  is  there  ?  " 

"Shall  J  repeat  it?" 

"  It  may  as  well  come  out  at  once,  Ingrid , 
you  know  as  much  as  I  do." 

"Yes,  to  be  sure.  You  will  go  your  own 
way,  and  that  you  know  he  does  not  like." 

"  No ;  he  would  rather  keep  me  in  leading- 
sti-ings." 

"  Yes,  especially  when  you  are  going  to 
fight." 

"  Are  people  to  be  allowed  to  do  and  say 
whatever  they  choose  ?  " 

"  No ;  but  you  can  keep  out  of  their  way. 
That  is  what  father  has  done  himself,  and  he 
has  become  a  respected  man  by  so  doing." 

"  Perhaps  he  has  been  less  tormented  than 
I  have  been." 

Ingrid  was  silent  a   little  while;  then   she 


78  synn6ve  solbakken. 

continued,  after  glancing  around  her :  "  There 
is  no  use  in  speaking  of  this  again  ;  but  still, 
whenever  you  know  that  enemies  are  in  wait- 
ing, you  ought  to  keep  out  of  the  way." 

"  No  ;  that  is  just  where  I  want  to  be  !  My 
name  is  not  Thorbjom  Granliden  for  nothing." 

He  had  stripped  the  bark  from  the  twig ; 
now  he  cut  the  latter  in  two.  Ingrid  fixed  her 
eyes  on  him,  and  asked,  rather  slowly,  "  Are 
you  going  to  Nordhoug  on  Sunday  ? " 

"  Yes." 

After  having  sat  silent  for  a  while,  without 
looking  at  him,  she  said  again,  "  Do  you  know 
that  Knud  Nordhoug  has  come  home  to  his 
sister's  wedding  ?  " 

"  Yes." 

Now  she  looked  at  him.  "Thorbjorn!  Thor- 
bjorn !  " 

"  Shall  he  be  allowed  now  any  more  than 
before  to  interfere  between  me  and  others  ?  " 

"  He  does  not  interfere,  —  not  more  than 
others  wish." 

"  Nobody  knows  what  others  may  -wish." 

*'  Yes,  you  do  know  well  enough." 

"  At  all  events,  she  never  says  anything  her- 
self." 

"Oh,  how  you  do  talk!"  said  Ingrid,  looking 
displeased ;  and  then,  getting  up,  she  glanced 
over  her  shoulder. 


synnOve  solbakken.  79 

He  flung  away  his  bits  of  twig,  put  his  knife 
into  its  sheath,  and  turned  toward  her. 

"  Listen  I  I  sometimes  get  tired  of  this. 
People  ruin  both  my  honor  and  hers  with  their 
gossip,  for  nothing  is  done  openly.  And,  on 
the  other  hand,  —  I  cannot  so  much  as  go 
over  to  Solbakken,  —  because  her  parents  do 
not  like  me,  she  says.  I  am  not  allowed  to 
visit  her  as  other  lads  go  to  see  their  girls, 
because  she  is  now  one  of  the  saints —  to  bo 
sure ! " 

"  Thorbjorn  !  "  said  Ingrid,  becoming  rather 

uneasy. 

But  he  continued :  "  Father  will  not  put  in 
a  word  for  me.  '  If  I  deserve  her  I  will  get 
her,'  he  says.  Stuff,  nonsense,  on  the  one  side, 
and  no  compensation  for  it  all  on  the  other ! 
Why,  I  do  not  as  much  as  know  whether  she 
really  "  — 

Ingrid  started  forward,  and  placed  her  hand 
over  his  mouth,  looking  behind  her  as  she  did 
so.  Just  then  the  bushes  were  bent  aside,  and  a 
tall,  slender  person,  blushing  rosy  red,  stepped 
forward  :  it  was  Synnove. 

"  Good-evening  !  "  said  she. 

Ingrid  looked  at  Thorbjorn  as  though  she 
would  say :  " There,  you  can  see  for  yourself !  " 
Thorbjorn    glanced    at    Ingrid   as    though    he 


BO  synn5ve  solbakken. 

wanted  to  say,  "  You  should  not  have  done 
go."     Neither  looked  at  Synnove. 

"  I  suppose  I  may  be  allowed  to  sit  down  a 
while :  I  have  walked  so  much  to-day,"  and  she 
seated  herself. 

Thorbjorn  turned  his  head  as  if  to  see 
whether  it  was  dry  where  she  had  sat  down. 
Ingrid  had  let  her  eyes  wander  over  to  Gran- 
liden,  and  now  she  suddenly  cried  out,  — 

"  Oh  dear !  oh  dear  !  Fagerlin  has  got  loose, 
and  is  going  across  the  new-plowed  field.  The 
horrid  beast!  What,  Kelleros,  too?  Well, 
that  is  really  too  much  ;  it  is  time  for  us  to  be 
off  to  the  saeter  !  "  and  she  started  down  the 
slope,  without  even  saying  farewell.  Synnove 
arose  at  once. 

"  Are  you  going  ?  "  asked  Thorbjorn 

"  Yes,"  said  she  ;  but  she  stood  still. 

"  You  might  as  well  wait  a  little,"  he  ob- 
served, without  looking  at  her. 

"  Another  time,"  replied  she,  gently. 

"  That  may  be  a  long  time  hence." 

She  raised  her  eyes.  He  was  looking  at  her 
loo,  now ;  but  it  was  quite  a  while  before  either 
spoke. 

"Sit  down  again,"  said  he,  a  little  em 
barrassed. 

"  No,"  she  answered,  and  remained  standing 


SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN.  81 

Me  felt  a  sense  of  defiance  rising  within  him  ; 
but  just  then  she  did  something  which  he  had 
not  expected  •  she  advanced  a  step,  bent  her- 
self forward  to  him,  looked  up  into  his  eyes, 
and  said,  with  a  smile, — 

'  Are  you  angry  with  me  ?  " 

And  when  he  ventured  to  return  her  look 
she  began  to  cry. 

••'  No!"  replied  he,  his  face  flaming.  He  held 
out  his  hand ;  but  as  her  eyes  were  full  of 
tears,  she  did  not  see  it,  and  he  drew  it  back. 
Presently  he  said,  "  So  you  have  heard  it?" 

"Yes,"  she  answered,  then  looked  up  and 
smiled.  But  there  were  now  more  tears  in 
her  eyes  than  before.  He  knew  not  what  he 
should  do  and  say ;  therefore  the  words  escaped 
his  lips,  — 

"  I  have  no  doubt  behaved  too  badly." 

This  was  spoken  very  gently.  She  looked 
down  and  turned  half  away.  "  You  should 
not  judge  what  you  know  nothing  about." 

This  was  said  in  a  half-choked  voice,  and  it 
grieved  him ;  he  felt  like  a  helpless  boy,  and 
80  he  said,  as  he  could  not  think  of  anything 
else  :  "  I  beg  your  pardon." 

But  now  she  actually  burst  out  crying.  This 
he  could  not  bear,  but  went  over  to  her,  put 
his   arm   about  her  waist,  and,  bending  down 

6 


82  SYNN{)VE   SOLBAKKEN. 

over   her,  said,  "Do  you   really  care   for   me 
then,  Synnove  ?  " 

"  Yes,"  she  sobbed. 

"  But  you  are  not  happy  ?  " 

She  did  not  answer. 

"  But  you  are  not  happy  ?  "  repeated  he. 

She  now  wept  more  than  ever,  and  tried  to 
draw  herself  away. 

"  Synnove  !  "  said  he,  and  tightened  his  hold. 
She,  still  weeping,  nestled  up  to  him.  "Come, 
we  must  talk  a  little  together,"  continued  he, 
and  he  helped  her  to  a  seat  in  the  heather ;  he 
himself  sat  down  by  her  side.  She  dried  her 
eyes,  and  tried  to  smile  ;  but  she  could  not. 
He  took  one  of  her  hands,  and  looked  into  her 
face.  "  Dear,  why  cannot  I  come  over  to  Sol- 
bakken  ?  " 

She  was  silent. 

"  Have  you  never  urged  this  ?  " 

She  was  silent. 

"  Why  have  you  not  done  so  ?  "  he  asked, 
and  now  drew  her  hand  nearer  to  him. 

"  I  dare  not,"  said  she,  quite  softly. 

His  face  grew  dark ;  he  moved  one  foot  a 
little  toward  him,  and,  resting  his  elbow  on  his 
knee,  laid  his  head  in  his  hand. 

*'  In  this  way,  I  shall  probably  never  get  ovei 
there,"  said  he,  finally. 


synnOve  sole ak ken.  83 

Instead  of  replying,  she  began  to  pull  up  the 
heather. 

"  Oh,  yes,  I  have  no  doubt  done  many 
things  which  were  not  as  they  should  be. 
But  indeed,  people  might  bear  a  little  with  me. 
I  am  not  wicked  "  —  he  hesitated  a  moment ; 
"  besides,  I  am  still  young,  —  only  a  little  over 
twenty  years  old,  but"  —  he  could  not  finish  the 
sentence  at  once.  "  But  any  one  who  is  really 
fond  of  me,"  he  added,  "■  ought  to "  —  and 
here  he  stopped  outright.  Then  he  heard,  in 
suppressed  tones  at  his  side, — 

"You  must  not  talk  so;  you  do  not  know 
how  much  one  —  I  dare  not  even  tell  Ingrid 
about  it "  —  and  again  she  burst  into  tears. 
"I  —  suffer  —  so —  much  !  " 

He  threw  his  arms  around  her,  and  drew  her 
close  to  him.  "  Talk  to  your  parents,"  whis- 
pered he,  "and  all  will  come  right,  you  will 
see." 

"  It  will  be  as  you  wish,"  she  sobbed. 

"  As  I  wish  ?  " 

Then  Synnove  turned,  and  put  her  arm 
about  his  neck.  "  If  you  only  cared  for  me  as 
much  as  I  do  for  you,"  said  she,  very  lovingly, 
and  with  an  attempt  to  smile. 

"  And  do  I  not  ?  "  asked  he,  softly  and  ten- 
derly. 


S4  SYNN5VE   SOLBAKKEN. 

"  No,  no  ;  you  never  take  my  advice.  You 
know  what  will  bring  us  together,  but  you 
never  do  it.  Why  do  you  not  do  it  ?  "  And 
as  she  now  at  length  had  begun  to  speak,  her 
words  flowed  freely,  and  she  continued  in  the 
same  strain  :  "  Ah  me  !  if  you  only  knew  how 
I  have  longed  for  the  day  when  I  might  see 
you  over  at  Solbakken.  But  there  is  always 
something  to  hear  which  is  not  as  it  ought  to 
be,  and  your  own  parents  are  the  people  who 
bring  it  over  to  us." 

There  was  kindled,  as  it  were,  a  light  within 
him  ;  and  he  now  distinctly  saw  her  moving 
about  at  Solbakken,  waiting  for  a  little  peace- 
ful moment  when  she  might  quietly  speak  of 
him  to  her  parents  ;  but  he  never  gave  her 
such  a  moment. 

"  You  should  have  told  me  this  before, 
Synnove !  " 

"  And  have  I  not  done  so  ?  " 

"  No,  not  as  now." 

She  thought  this  over  a  little ;  presently  she 
said,  carefully  laying  small  folds  in  her  apron, 
"  Then  I  suppose  it  was  because  —  I  did  not 
quite  dare." 

But  the  idea  of  her  being  afraid  of  hint 
touched  him  so  deeply  that,  for  the  first  time 
in  his  life,  he  gave  her  a  kiss. 


SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN.  85 

This  SO  astonished  her  that  slie  suddenly 
stopped  crying ;  her  eyes  grew  unsteady,  as  she 
tried  to  smile,  looked  down,  then  up  at  him, 
and  now  really  smiled.  They  talked  no  more, 
but  they  found  each  other's  hand  again ;  neither 
ventured  upon  the  slightest  pressure.  Then  she 
drew  gently  back,  began  to  wipe  her  eyes  and 
her  face,  and  to  smooth  her  hair,  as  it  had  be- 
come somewhat  disordered.  He  sat  there  think- 
ing to  himself,  as  he  looked  at  her,  "  If  she  is 
more  shy  than  the  other  girls  in  the  parish, 
and  wants  to  be  treated  in  a  different  way,  it 
will  not  do  to  make  any  objections." 

He  accompanied  her  up  to  the  sseter,  which 
lay  not  very  far  distant.  He  would  have  liked 
to  walk  hand  in  hand  with  her,  but  there 
had  come  something  over  him  that  made  him 
scarcely  dare  touch  her,  and  feel  that  it  was 
strange  that  he  was  allowed  to  walk  by  her 
side. 

When  they  parted,  he  said,  "  It  shall  be 
some  time  before  you  hear  anything  bad  of  me 
again." 

At  home,  he  found  his  father  engaged  in 
tanying  grain  from  the  store-house  to  the  mill ; 
for  the  people  in  tne  parish  round  about  had 
their  grinding  done  at  the  Granlid  mill,  when 
the  water  in  their  own  brooks  had  given  out ; 


86  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

the  Granlid  mill-stream  was  never  dry.  There 
were  a  great  many  bags  to  carry,  some  pretty 
heavy,  some  exceedingly  large.  The  women 
stood  near  by,  wringing  the  clothes  they  had 
in  the  wash.  Thorbjorn  went  over  to  his  fa- 
tlier,  and  laid  hold  of  a  bag.  "  Would  you  like 
me  to  help  you  ?  " 

"  Oh,  I  can  do  it  very  well  alone,"  said  Sse- 
mund,  as  he  briskly  lifted  a  bag  on  his  back 
and  moved  away  toward  the  mill. 

"  There  are  many  of  them,"  said  Thorbjorn  ; 
and  seizing  two  large  ones,  put  his  back  up 
against  them,  and  drew  them  over  his  shoul- 
ders, each  with  one  hand,  while  he  steadied 
them  on  either  side  with  his  elbow.  Midway, 
he  met  Sfemund,  who  was  returning  for  more ; 
his  father  gave  him  a  hasty  glance,  but  said 
nothing.  As  Thorbjorn,  in  his  turn,  went  back 
to  the  store-house,  he  met  Saemund  with  two 
still  larger  bags.  This  time  Thorbjorn  took 
a  small  one,  and  went  with  it ;  when  Ssemund 
met  him  he  looked  at  him  again,  and  longer 
than  the  first  time.  So  it  happened  that  at 
last  they  met  at  the  store-house. 

"  There  has  come  a  message  from  Nordhoug," 
said  Saemund  ;  "  they  want  to  have  you  at  the 
wedding  on  Sunday." 

Tngrid  looked  imploringly  over  at  him  from 
her  work  ;  his  mother,  too. 


SYNNOVK   SOLBAKKKN.  87 

"  Ah,  indeed,"  answered  Thorbjorn,  dryly, 
but  took  this  time  the  largest  two  bags  he 
could  find. 

"  Are  you  going  ?  "  asked  Saeraund,  in  a 
gloomy  temper 

"  No." 


CHAPTER   IV. 

The  Granlid  steter  was  beautifully  situated, 
commanding  a  fine  view  of  the  parish  ;  of  Sol- 
bakken,  first  and  foremost,  with  its  many-hued 
groves  about  it,  and  then  of  the  other  gurds, 
which  lay  forest-encircled,  so  that  the  green 
patch  with  houses  in  its  midst  looked  like  a 
peace-stead  that  had  been  discovered  and 
forcibly  snatched  from  the  wild  woodlands. 
There  were  fourteen  gards  that  could  be  counted 
from  the  Granlid  saeter  ;  of  the  houses  of  the 
Granlid  gard  the  roofs  alone  could  be  seen,  and 
even  these  only  from  the  extreme  end  of  the 
saeter  lawn.  Nevertheless,  the  girls  often  sat 
watching  the  smoke  which  rose  from  the  chim- 
neys. 

"  Now,  mother  is  cooking  dinner,"  said  In- 
grid.  "  To-day  they  will  have  corned  beef  and 
bacon." 

"Listen!  they  are  calling  the  men,"  said 
Synnove.  "  I  wonder  where  they  are  work- 
ing to-day,"  and  the  eyes  of  both  girls  followed 
the  smoke  that  darted  up  in  giddy  haste  through 


synnOvp:  solrakken.  89 

the  clear,  glad,  sunny  air,  but  soon  slackened  its 
8])eeil,  considered  a  while,  then  spread  out  in  a 
broad  processional  sweep,  growing  ever  thinner 
and  thinner,  until  at  last  it  became  like  a  flut- 
tering veil,  and  soon  was  scarcely  visible.  Many 
thoughts  would  then  arise  in  their  minds,  and 
wander  out  over  the  parish.  To-day  the  guests 
were  all  assembled  at  Nordhoug.  It  was  a 
couple  of  days  after  the  wedding,  but  as  the 
festivities  were  to  last  six  days,  there  reached 
them  every  now  and  then  the  report  of  a  gun, 
and  the  voices  of  those  who  could  shout  the 
loudest. 

"  They  are  having  a  merry  time  there,"  re- 
marked In  grid. 

"  I  do  not  envy  them,"  said  Synnove,  and 
took  up  her  knitting. 

"  Still  it  would  be  interesting  to  be  there," 
said  Ingrid,  who  was  sitting  on  her  heels,  and 
looking  toward  the  gard,  where  the  people  were 
walking  to  and  fro  among  the  houses,  —  some 
going  toward  the  store-house,  where  probably 
tables  of  refreshments  were  spread,  others  in 
pairs,  separated  from  the  rest,  in  confidential 
conversation. 

"  I  do  not  quite  know  what  there  is  to  de- 
sire over  there,"  said  Synnove. 

"  I  scarcely  know  myself,"   replied  Ingrid, 


90  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKKN. 

who  sat  as  before.  "  I  suppose  it  must  be  the 
dancing,"  she  added. 

Synnove  made  no  reply  to  this. 

''  Have  you  never  danced?"  asked  lugrid. 

"  No." 

''  Do  you  think,  then,  that  dancing  is  a  sin  ?  *' 

'"'■  I  really  do  not  know." 

Ingrid  said  nothing  more  upon  the  subject 
just  then,  for  she  remembered  that  the  Hau- 
gians  strictly  forbade  dancing,  and  she  did  not 
care  to  inquii-e  further  into  the  position  Syn- 
nove's  parents  took  with  her  in  this  particular. 
But  whatever  train  of  thought  she  might  have 
fallen  into,  she  said,  presently,  "A  better  dancer 
than  Thorbjorn  I  have  never  seen." 

Synnove  paused  a  while  before  she  said, 
"  Yes,  he  is  said  to  dance  well." 

"  You  should  see  him  dance  ! "  burst  out  In- 
grid, turning  toward  her. 

But  Synnove  answered  abruptly,  "  No,  I  do 
not  wish  to  see  that."  Ingrid  was  a  little  sur- 
prised at  this.  Synnove  bent  over  her  knit- 
ting, and  began  to  count  the  stitches.  Sud- 
denly she  let  her  knitting  fall  in  her  lap,  gazed 
vacantly  before  her,  and  said,  "  So  intensely 
happy,  though,  as  I  am  to-day,  I  have  not  been 
for  a  long  time." 

"  Why  ?  "  inquired  Ingrid. 


SYNNOVE    SOLBAKKEN.  91 

"'■  Oh  —  because  he  is  not  dancing  at  Nord- 


houtr  to-dc 


o 


ly- 


Ingrid  sat  lost  in  her  own  thoughts.  ''  Well, 
there  are,  no  doubt,  many  girls  who  would  like 
to  have  him  there,"  said  she. 

Synnove  parted  her  lips  as  though  she  were 
about  to  speak,  but  she  did  not  utter  a  word, 
knit  off  the  last  stitch  of  a  needle,  and  began 
jn  another. 

"  Tl)orbjorn  probably  longs  to  be  there  him- 
self;  I  feel  sure  of  that,"  said  Ingrid;  but  did 
not,  until  it  was  too  late,  consider  what  she  had 
said,  and  looked  at  Synnove,  who  sat  there  over 
her  knitting,  blushing  crimson. 

Now  Ingrid  was  able  to  take  a  hasty  review 
of  the  whole  conversation ;  she  clasped  her 
hands,  moved  on  her  knees  over  the  heather 
until  she  brought  herself  in  front  of  her,  and 
began  to  look  Synnove  squarely  in  the  face ; 
but  Synnove  went  on  knitting. 

Then  Ingrid  laughed,  and  said,  "  Now,  for 
many  a  long  day  you  have  been  hiding  some- 
thing from  me,  again." 

"  What  do  you  say  ?  "  asked  Synnove,  and 
cast  a  questioning  look  at  her. 

"•  You  are  not  angry  because  Thorbjiirn 
dances,"  said  Ingrid,  laughing  as  before.  The 
other  did  not  answer.     Ingrid's   face  was  one 


92  SYNNOVE    SOLBAKKEN. 

broad  smile,  and  now  she  put  her  arms  about 
Synnove's  neck,  and  whispered  in  her  ear, 
"  But  you  are  angry  because  he  dances  with 
others  than  you !  " 

"  How  you  do  talk ! "  said  Synnove,  tore 
herself  away,  and  arose.  Ingrid  got  up  also, 
and  followed  her. 

"  It  is  a  pity  that  you  cannot  dance,  Syn- 
nove," said  she,  and  laughed,  —  "  really  a  great 
pity  I  Come,  now,  I  might  just  as  well  teach 
you  at  once  !  " 

She  took  Synnove  by  the  waist. 

"  What  are  you  going  to  do  ? "  inquired 
Synnove. 

"  Teach  you  to  dance,  that  you  may  not  have 
such  sorrow  in  the  world  as  to  have  him  dance 
with  others  than  you  !  " 

Now  Synnove  too  had  to  laugh,  or  at  least 
make  a  show  of  laughing. 

"  Some  one  might  see  us,"  said  she. 

"  Bless  you  for  that  answer,  stupid  as  it  was," 
replied  Ingrid,  and  began  forthwith  to  sing 
"  tra-la-la,"  and  move  Synnove  round  in  stej: 
to  it. 

"  No,  no !     It  is  not  possible !  " 

"  You  have  not  been  so  happy  for  many  a 
day,  you  said  a  while  ago.     Now,  come  I  " 

''  If  it  only  were  possible  !  " 


synnOve  solbakken.  93 

"  Just  try,  and  you  will  see  that  it  is  possi- 
ble !  " 

"  You  are  so  giddy,  Ingrid  !  " 

"  That  is  just  what  the  cat  said  to  the  spar- 
row, wheu  the  sparrow  would  not  stand  still 
and  let  the  cat  catch  him.     Come,  now  I " 

*'  Indeed,  I  actually  feel  inclined  to,  myself 
but"  — 

"  Now  I  am  Thorbjoru,  and  you  are  his 
young  wife,  who  will  not  have  him  dance  with 
any  one  but  yourself." 

"But"  — 

Ingrid  sang  again  "  tra-la-la." 

"  But  "  —  Synnove  still  insisted  ;  yet  she  was 
ah'eady  dancing!  It  was  a  spring-dance,  and 
Ingrid  went  on  in  advance  with  great  strides 
and  manly  swing  of  the  arras ;  Synnove  fol- 
lowed with  short  steps  and  downcast  eyes, --- 
and  Ingrid  sang  :  — 

"  The  fox  once  lay  'neath  the  birch-tree's  root, 
By  the  heather  ; 
The  hare  came  hopping  there,  on  tripping  foot, 
O'er  the  heather. 
'  Well,  this,  indeed,  is  a  sunny  day. 
And  glitt'ring  beams  all  around  here  play, 
O'er  the  heather. 

"The  fox  then  laughed  in  his  quiet  laif, 
By  the  heather ; 
In  wanton  mood  came  frolicking  tlie  har«, 
O'er  the  heather. 


94  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

'  I  feel  80  glad  over  even-thing, 
Ueigho  !  —  but  you  make  a  daring  epring, 
O'er  the  heather.' 

"  The  fox  lay  quietly  waiting  there, 
By  the  heather ; 
And  tumbling  right  toward  him  came  the  hare, 

O'er  the  heather. 
'  Good  gracious !  why,  is  that  you,  my  dear  ? 
Pray,  how  can  j'ou  dare  come  dancing  here 
O'er  the  heather?'"  i 

"There  !  was  it  not  possible?"  asked  Ingrid 
as  they  paused,  out  of  breath. 

Synnove  laughed,  and  declared  she  would 
like  better  to  waltz.  "  Why,  there  is  nothing 
in  the  way  of  that,"  observed  Ingrid,  and  they 
prepared  for  it  at  once  by  Ingrid  showing  her 
how  she  should  place  her  feet;  "for  waltzing  is 
difficult,"  said  she. 

"  Oh,  it  is  easy  enough,  if  we  can  only  keep 
time,"  said  Synnove ;  and  so  Ingrid  suggested 
that  they  should  try. 

So  they  did,  Ingrid  singing  and  Synnove 
joining  in,  at  first  only  huinuung,  then  aloud. 
But  suddenly  Ingrid  paused,  let  go  of  her, 
and  clasped  her  hands  in  sheer  astonishment. 
"  Why,  you  can  waltz  !  "  she  broke  out. 

"  Hush  I  Do  not  let  us  talk  about  it  any 
more,"  said  Synnove,  and  again  took  hold  oi 
Ingrid  to  continue. 

1  Auber  Forestier's  translation. 


synnOye  solbakken.  95 

"  But  where  did  you  learn  "  - 

"  Tra-la-la,  tra-la-la !  "  and  Synnove  swung 
Ingrid  round. 

Then  Ingrid  danced  to  her  heart's  content, 
while  singing,  — 

"  See,  sunbeams  dance  on  old  Haukelid  high ; 
Dance,  my  sweetheart,  for  shades  of  evening  draw  nighl 
The  stream  now  leaps  tow'rd  the  glitt'riug  wave  ; 
Leap,  too,  rollicking  youth,  leap  on  to  thy  grave! 
See,  birch-trees  bend  to  the  wind's  giddy  play ; 
Bend,  thou  confident  maid !     What  now  did  give  way  ? 
See"i  — 

What  curious  songs  you  are  singing  ! "  said 
Synnove,  and  stopped  dancing. 

"  I  do  not  know  what  I  am  singing ;  I  have 
heard  Thorbjorn  sing  them." 

"  They  are  Slave  Bent's  songs,"  said  Syn- 
nove.    "  I  know  them." 

"Are  they?"  asked  Ingrid,  and  felt  a  little 
uneasy.  She  sat  with  her  eyes  fixed  on  the 
offound,  and  said  nothing.  All  at  once  her 
attention  was  drawn  to  some  one  down  on  the 
road  below.  "  Say,  there  is  some  one  driving 
down  from  Granliden,  and  taking  the  parish 
road!" 

Synnove  looked  that  way,  too.  "  Is  it  he  ?  ' 
asked  she. 

"Yes,  it  is  Thorbjorn  ;  he  is  going  to  town.' 

1  Anber  Forestier's  translation. 


96  synnOve  solbakken. 

It  was  Thorbjorn,  and  he  was  driving  to 
town.  It  was  a  long  distance  off.  He  had  a 
heavy  load,  and  therefore  drove  leisurely  along 
the  dusty  road.  This  was  so  situated  that  it 
could  be  seen  from  the  sseter,  and  when  he 
heard  the  shouting  from  above  he  knew  who 
was  there  stood  up  on  his  load  and  shouted 
back  again,  so  that  it  resounded  through  the 
mountains.  Then  the  loor  was  played  down  to 
him  ;  he  sat  and  listened,  and  when  it  stopped 
he  stood  up  again  and  shouted.  This  continued 
as  he  drove  on,  and  it  put  him  in  high  spirits. 
He  looked  at  Solbakken,  and  thought  it  had 
never  had  so  much  sun  as  now.  But  while  he 
sat  there  looking  at  it,  he  entirely  forgot  his 
driving,  so  that  the  horse  went  its  own  way. 
Suddenly  he  was  startled  by  its  making  a  great 
spring  to  one  side,  so  that  one  thill  cracked,  and 
off  went  the  horse  in  a  wild  trot  across  the 
Nordhoug  fields ;  for  it  was  over  them  the  road 
lay.  He  stood  up  in  the  cart  and  drew  in  the 
reins.  There  arose  a  struggle  between  him  and 
the  horse ;  it  was  about  dashing  over  a  precipice, 
and  he  held  it  back.  He  got  it  so  far  that  it 
reared,  and  then  he  sprang  down,  and  before  the 
horse  could  start  on  again  he  had  caught  hold  of 
a  tree  ;  now  tl^e  horse  was  forced  to  stand  still. 
The  load  was  overturned,  one  thill  broken,  and 


SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN.  97 

the  horse  stood  and  shivered.     Thorbjorn  went 
forward  to  the  animal,  took  it  by  the  bridle, 
and  spoke  gently  to  it ;  he  at  once  turned  it, 
to  make  sure  of  avoiding  the  precipice  if  it 
should  start  off  again.     Stand  still  it  could  not, 
so  terrified  was  it,  and  he  was  compelled  to  fol- 
low it,  running  along,  farther  and  farther  on, 
straight  up  to  the  road  again.     He  thus  passed 
directly   by  his   own  things,  which   lay  over- 
turned ;  the  pails  and  tubs  broken,  and  their 
contents   partly  destroyed.      Hith(»rto    he    had 
thought  only  of  the  danger ;  now  he  began  to 
consider  the  consequences,  and  waxed  wroth.    It 
was  plain  to  him  that  there  would  be  no  trip  to 
town  that  day,  and  the  more  he  reflected  upon 
it  the  more  vexed  he  became.      Reaching  the 
road,  the  horse  gave  another  jump,  then  tried 
with  one  bound  to  tear  itself  loose ;  and  now 
Thorbjorn's  anger  broke  out.     While  he  lu-ld 
the  bridle  with  his  left  hand,  with   the  great 
riding- whip  in    his   right,   he    gave    the    horse 
lash  after  lash,  lash   after  lash,  on  its  flanks, 
until  it  was  so  maddened  that  it  struck  out  at 
his  breast  with  its  fore-feet.     But  he  held   it 
off  from  him,  and  beat  it  now  harder  than  be- 
fore, with  all  his  might,  and  using  the  butt  end 
of  his  whip. 

"  I  will  teach  you,  you  obstinate   scamp  1 " 
7 


98  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

and  he  struck.  The  horse  neighed  and  whin- 
nied ;  he  struck.  "  Ha !  you  shall  make  the 
acquaintance  of  a  fist  that  is  strong  ! "  and  he 
struck.  The  horse  snorted  until  the  foam 
rolled  down  over  his  hand ;  but  he  struck. 
"  This  shall  be  the  first  and  last  time,  you  crip- 
ple !  There  !  Once  more  !  So  !  Ho,  you 
worthless  nag,  you  shall  learn  how  a  man  can 
punish  !  "  and  he  struck. 

Meanwhile,  they  had  turned  ;  the  horse  had 
ceased  to  offer  any  resistance,  quivered  and 
quaked  under  every  blow,  and  crouched,  neigh- 
ing, whenever  it  saw  the  whip  approaching. 
Then  Thorbjorn  became  rather  ashamed;  he 
paused.  At  the  same  time  he  espied  a  man, 
who  sat  on  the  edge  of  a  ditch  b}'^  the  road- 
side, leaning  on  his  elbow,  and  laughing  at 
him.  He  knew  not  how  it  happened  ;  it  grew 
dark  before  his  eyes,  and,  holding  the  horse  by 
one  hand,  he  started  toward  the  man  with  up- 
lifted whip.  "  I  will  give  you  something  to 
laugh  at  ! "  he  shouted.  The  blow  fell,  but 
it  half  missed  its  mark,  for  with  a  shriek  the 
man  rolled  down  into  the  ditch.  There  he  re- 
mained standing  on  all  fours,  but  he  raised  his 
head,  squinted  at  Thorbjorn,  puckered  up  his 
mouth  as  for  laughter ;  yet  the  sound  of  laugh- 
ter was  not  heard.     Thorbjorn  was  startled,  for 


SYNNOVE    SOLHAKKEN.  99 

this    faco    he   had   seen    before.      Yes,    it    was 
Aslak. 

Thorbjorn  did  not  know  why,  but  there  ran 
a  cold  shiver  down  his  back.  "  I  suppose  it 
was  you  who  frightened  the  horse  both  times," 
oaid  he. 

"  Why,  I  was  only  lying  there  asleep,"  an- 
swered Aslak,  and  drew  himself  up  a  little  ; 
"  and  you  woke  me  when  you  got  so  frantic 
over  your  horse." 

"  It  was  vou  who  made  the  horse  frantic. 
All  animals  are  afraid  of  you,"  and  he  patted 
the  horse,  from  whom  the  sweat  was  pouring 
in  streams. 

"  I  should  think  he  would  be  more  afraid  ol' 
you  now  than  of  me.  I  have  never  acted  so  to 
any  horse,"  said  Aslak,  who  was  now  bolt-up- 
right on  his  knees  in  the  ditch. 

"  Do  not  use  too  strong  language,"  said 
Thorbjijrn,  and  shook  his  whip  menacingly. 

Aslak  arose  then,  and  scrambled  up  out  of 
the  ditch. 

"  I,  you  say,  —  I  use  strong  language  ?  No  I  " 
''  Where  were  you  going,  that  you  were  driving 
8o  fast?"  said  he,  in  a  bland  voice,  as  he  ap- 
proached Thorbjorn,  but  staggered  from  side 
to  side,  for  he  wns  <lrunk. 

"I  shall  not  have  much  chance  of  going  be- 


100  STNNOYE   SOLBAKKEN. 

jond  here  to-day,"  said  Thorbjom,  who  waa 
nnhitchinor  his  horse. 

'•  That  is  really  provoking,"  said  Aslak  ;  and 
he  drew  still  nearer,  touching  his  hat  as  he  did 
80.  "  Lord  bless  me !  "  said  he.  "  Such  a  great 
fine  fellow  you  have  grown  to  be,  since  last  I 
saw  you  I " 

With  both  fists  in  his  pockets,  he  stood,  as 
well  as  he  could,  contemplating  Thorbj(5m,  who 
could  not  get  his  horse  loose  from  the  wreck 
of  the  cart.  Thorbjom  needed  help,  but  he 
could  not  bring  himself  to  ask  it  of  this  fellow ; 
for  Aslak  looked  uglv :  his  clothes  were  soiled 
from  the  ditch,  his  hair  hung  in  matted  tangles 
from  under  a  glossy  hat  that  was  pretty  old, 
and  the  face,  although  partly  the  well-known 
one  of  old,  was  now  distorted  into  one  contin- 
ual broad  grin,  the  eyes  were  still  more  closed 
than  ever,  so  that  he  had  to  throw  his  head  a 
little  back  and  open  his  mouth  a  little,  when 
he  looked  at  any  one.  His  features  had  be- 
come flabbv,  his  whole  form  ricnd  ;  for  Aslak 
drank.  Thorbjom  had  seen  him  frequently  be- 
fore, which  Aslak  did  not  let  on  that  he  knew. 
As  a  peddler,  he  had  been  in  the  habit  of  going 
the  rounds  of  the  parish,  and  was  fond  of  being 
where  there  was  anv  merrv-making,  as  he  had 
many  songs  to  sing,  told  a  good  story,  and  got 


synnOve  solbakken.  101 

his  brandy  in  return.  Thus  he  had  now  been 
at  the  Nordhoug  wedding,  but  had,  as  Thor- 
bjorn  afterwards  learned,  found  it  wise  to  absent 
himself  for  a  timv.,  as  he  had,  according  to  an 
old  trick  of  his,  stirred  the  people  up  to  a  fight, 
and  it  threatened  to  break  over  his  own  head. 

"  You  might  just  as  well  fasten  him  to  the 
cart  as  try  to  get  him  loose  from  it,"  said  he. 
"  You  will  have  to  go  up  to  Nordhoug,  any  way, 
to  get  things  put  in  order  again." 

Thorbjorii  had,  no  doubt,  thought  the  same, 
but  would  have  preferred  not  to  think  so. 
"  There  is  a  great  wedding  up  there,"  said  he. 

"  So  much  greater  the  help,"  replied  Aslak. 

Thorbjorn  stood  somewhat  irresolute  ;  but 
without  aid  he  could  neither  get  forward  nor 
backward,  and  so  it  was  best  to  go  up  to  the 
gard.  He  fastened  his  horse  for  the  time,  and 
started.  Aslak  followed.  Thorbjorn  looked 
back  at  him. 

"  So  I  go  back  to  the  wedding  in  good  com- 
pany," said  Aslak,  and  laughed.  Thorbjojrn 
made  no  reply,  but  walked  fast.  Aslak  came 
on  behind,  singing, — 

"  Two  peasants  once  fared  to  the  wedding  feast,"  etc., — 

an  old,  well-known  ballad.  "  I  say,  you  are 
walking  fast,"  said  he,  presently.  "  You  will 
get  there,  any  way,"  he  added. 


102  synnOve  solbakken. 

Thorbjorn  made  no  reply. 

Sounds  of  dancing  and  music  met  them. 
Faces  were  visible  peering  out  at  them  through 
the  open  windows  in  the  great  two-story  build- 
ing. Groups  gathered  together  outside.  He 
saw  that  they  ivere  querying  among  themselves 
as  to  who  the  new-comers  could  be  ;  presently, 
that  he  was  recognized,  and  that  by  degrees 
they  descried  the  horse  down  yonder,  and  the 
pails  and  tubs  which  lay  scattered  over  the 
ground.  The  dancing  ceased  ;  the  whole  crowd 
swarmed  out  into  the  gard  just  as  Thorbjorn 
and  Aslak  came  up. 

"  Here  comes  an  unwilling  wedding  guest !  " 
cried  Aslak,  as  he  finally  approached  the  gi'oup, 
behind  Thorbjorn. 

The  people  greeted  Thorbjorn,  and  speedily 
encircled  him. 

"  God  bless  the  gathering  I     Good  ale  on  the 
table,  pretty  women  on  the  floor,  and  good  fid- 
dlers on  the  stool !  "  cried  Aslak,  pushing  him 
self,  as  he  spoke,  right  into  their  midst. 

Some  laughed,  others  looked  grave ;  one  said, 
"Aslak,  the  peddler,  is  always  in  good  spirits." 

Thorbjorn  at  once  found  acquaintances,  whom 
he  liad  to  tell  about  his  accident ;  they  would 
not  allow  him  to  go  himself  after  his  horse 
and  things,  but   bade  others  go.     The  bride 


SYNNdVE   SOLBAKKKN.  103 

groom,  a  young  man,  and  former  school-mate, 
asked  him  in  to  taste  of  the  wedding  brewing ; 
and  now  they  passed  on  into  the  house.  Some 
wanted  to  continue  the  dancing,  especially  the 
women ;  others  wished  to  have  a  little  time  for 
drinking,  and  to  get  Aslak  to  tell  them  stories, 
since  he  had  now  returned  to  the  gard  again,  in 
spite  of  everything. 

"  But  you  will  have  to  be  a  little  more  on 
your  guard  than  last  time,"  one  added. 

Thorbjorn  inquired  where  all  the  people 
were. 

"  Oh,"  was  the  reply,  "  there  was  a  little 
disturbance  here  a  while  ago ;  now  some  have 
gone  to  rest,  others  are  over  yonder  in  the  barn, 
playing  cards,  and  some  are  sitting  where  Knud 
Nordhoug  is." 

He  did  not  ask  where  Knud  Nordhoug  was. 

The  bridegroom's  father,  an  old  man,  who 
Bat  smoking  a  clay  pipe  and  drinking  ale,  now 
said,  "  Come,  out  with  a  yarn,  you  Aslak  !  It 
will  be  entertaining  for  once." 

"  Are  there  others  who  ask  me  ?  "  inquired 
Aslak,  who  had  seated  himself  astride  a  stool, 
it  little  distance  from  the  table,  around  which 
several  others  sat. 

"  Yes,  to  be  sure,"  said  the  bridegroom,  anff 
gave  him  a  dram  ;  "■  now  I  ask  you." 


104  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

"  Are  there  many  who  ask  in  this  way  ?  " 
said  Aslak. 

"It  may  be,"  said  a  young  woman  over  on  a 
side  bench,  and  offered  him  a  stoup  of  wine. 
It  was  the  bride,  a  woman  of  about  twenty 
years  of  age,  light  complexioned,  but  very  thin 
and  haggard,  with  large  eyes,  and  rigid  lines 
about  the  mouth.  "  I  like  your  stories  very 
well,"  she  added. 

The  bridegroom  looked  at  her,  and  his  father 
looked  at  him. 

"  Yes,  Nordhoug  folks  have  always  liked  my 
yarns  !  "  said  Aslak.  "  Honor  be  to  them  !  " 
he  exclaimed,  and  drained  a  glass  which  was 
handed  him  by  one  of  the  groomsmen. 

"  Come,  then,  out  with  something ! "  shouted 
several. 

"  About  Sigrid,  the  gypsy  woman,"  cried  one. 

"  No,  that  is  awful !  "  said  others,  especially 
women. 

"  About  the  battle  of  Lier  !  "  begged  Svend, 
the  drummer. 

"  No  ;  rather  something  amusing !  "  then  said 
a  very  erect  lad,  who  stood  in  his  shirt  sleeves, 
leaning  up  against  the  wall,  while  his  right 
hand,  which  hung  relaxed  at  his  side,  rather  too 
frequently  found  its  way  into  the  hair  of  some 
young  girls  who  sat  near  him.  They  scolded, 
but  they  did  not  stir. 


synnOve  solbakken.  105 

"  Yes,  that  is  what  I  will  tell,  —  yes,  I  will," 
eaid  Aslak. 

"  The  deuce !  "  muttered  an  elderly  man, 
who  lay  across  the  bed  smoking.  One  leg  hung 
down  ;  with  the  other  he  kept  kicking  a  fina 
jacket,  which  hung  over  the  bed-post. 

"  Let  my  jacket  alone  !  "  called  out  the  lad 
who  stood  up  against  the  wall. 

"  Let  my  daughters  alone  !  "  rejoined  he  who 
lay  on  the  bed. 

Now  the  girls  moved  away. 

"  Ho,  I  will  tell  what  /  please !  '  cried 
Aslak.  "  For  the  brandy  cup  stirs  the  courage 
up  I "  said  he,  clapping  together  the  palms  of 
his  hands. 

"  Tell  us  what  we  please,"  reiterated  the  man 
on  the  bed  ;  "  for  the  brandy  is  ours." 

"  What  does  that  signif}'-  ? "  inquired  Aslak, 
with  wide-opened  eyes. 

"  Oh,  the  pig  we  fatten  we  kill,  too,"  an- 
swered  the  man,  dangling  his  leg. 

Aslak  closed  his  eyes,  but  sat  still,  without 
changing  the  position  of  his  head ;  then  it  fell 
on  his  breast,  and  he  was  silent.  Several  spoke 
to  him,  but  he  did  not  hear  them.  "  The 
brandy  has  got  the  better  of  him,"  said  he  who 
lay  on  the  bed. 

Presently,  Aslak   looked    up,  once  more  asi 


106  synnOve  solbakken. 

Bumed  his  usual  smile,  und  remarked,  "  Yes, 
now  you  shall  hear  a  jovial  tale.  Lord  bless 
me  !  how  jovial !  "  said  he,  after  a  while,  open- 
ing wide  his  mouth  as  though  he  were  laughing, 
without  any  sound  of  laughter  being  heard. 

"  He  is  really  in  fine  spirits  to-day,"  said  the 
bridgroom's  father. 

"  Yes,  indeed,  he  is!  "  cried  Aslak.  "  A  glass 
before  starting,  then  ! "  said  he,  and  stretched 
out  his  hand. 

It  was  handed  him.  He  drained  it  slowly, 
held  his  head  a  little  back  with  the  last  drop  in 
his  mouth,  then  swallowed  it,  and,  turning  to 
him  on  the  bed,  said,  "  There,  now,  I  am  your 
pig !  "  and  laughed  as  before.  He  clasped  his 
hands  about  his  knee,  and  thus  raised  his  foot 
up  and  down,  while  he  himself  rocked  to  and 
fro,  and  then  he  began  :  — 

"  Well,  once  there  was  a  girl  who  lived  off 
in  a  valley.  What  the  valley  was  called  does 
not  matter,  nor  what  the  girl's  name  was.  But 
the  girl  was  pretty ;  so  thought  the  owner  of  the 
gard  at  —  hist !  —  and  it  was  at  his  place  she 
served.  She  received  good  wages,  she  did,  and 
she  got  more  than  she  should  have  had,  —  she 
got  a  child.  Folks  said  that  it  was  by  him ;  but 
he  did  not  say  so,  for  he  was  married,  nor  did 
she  say  so,  for  she  was  proud,  the  poor  wretch. 


synnOve  solbakken.  107 

So  there  was,  no  doubt,  a  He  told  at  the  christ- 
ening ;  and  the  child  she  had  brought  into  the 
world  was  an  outcast  of  a  boy,  so  that  it  really 
did  not  matter  if  he  was  christened  in  a  lie.  A 
tenant  house  down  below  the  gard  was  given 
to  her,  which  the  wife  at  the  gard  did  not  like, 
as  might  have  been  expected.  Whenever  the 
girl  came  up  there  she  spit  after  her,  and  when 
the  little  lad  of  hers  came  to  play  with  the 
gard-boys  she  told  them  to  drive  the  bastard 
away  ;  he  deserved  nothing  better,  she  said. 

"  The  wife  begged  her  husband,  both  by 
night  and  by  day,  to  turn  the  wretched  girl  on 
the  parish.  The  man  resisted  so  long  as  there 
was  anything  of  a  man  left  in  him  ;  but  at  last 
he  fell  to  drinking,  and  then  his  wife  got  the 
upper  hand.  After  that  the  poor  wretch  had  a 
hard  time  of  it ;  every  year  it  grew  worse,  and 
got  so  at  last  that  she  was  on  the  verge  of  starv- 
ing to  death,  with  her  little  boy,  who  would  not 
go  away  from  his  mother. 

"  So  it  continued,  year  after  year,  until  eight 
of  them  had  passed  by ;  still  the  girl  had  not 
left  the  place,  although  now  she  was  forced  to 
go  away.  And  so  she  went.  But  first  the 
entire  gard  was  in  a  fine  blaze,  and  the  man 
Durned  to  death,  for  he  was  drunk.  The  wife 
saved  herself  and  the  children,  and  she  said  it 


108  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

was  that  raiserablo,  girl  down  at  the  tenant 
house  who  had  kindled  the  fire.  It  might  be 
that  this  was  so.  And  it  might  also  be  other- 
wise. That  was  a  singular  boy  of  hers.  For 
eight  years  he  had  seen  his  mother  roughing 
it,  and  knew  well  where  the  fault  lay,  for  she 
had  often  told  him  when  he  asked  why  she  was 
always  crying.  She  had  done  so  the  day  be- 
fore she  was  to  leave,  and  that  was  why  he  had 
gone  off  at  night.  But  she  was  imprisoned  for 
life,  because  sh-e  told  the  judge  herself  that  it 
was  she  who  had  made  the  fine  blaze  up  at  the 
gard.  The  boy  lived  on  the  parish,  and  got 
help  from  everybody,  because  he  had  such  a 
wicked  mother.  Then  he  left  this  parish,  and 
went  far  away  to  another,  where  he  did  not 
receive  much  aid,  for  there  he  found  no  one 
who  knew  what  a  wicked  mother  he  had.  I 
do  not  think  he  told  of  it  himself.  The  last  I 
heard  of  him  he  was  drunk,  and  they  say  he 
has  given  himself  up  to  drink  of  late  :  whether 
this  be  true  or  not  shall  remain  unsaid  ;  but  it 
is  true  that  I  do  not  know  what  better  he  could 
do.  He  is  a  bad,  wicked  fellow,  that  is  certain ; 
he  does  not  love  people,  loves  them  still  less 
when  they  are  good  to  one  another,  and  least 
of  all  when  they  are  good  to  him.  And  he 
wants  others  to  be  like  himself,  although    ha 


synnOve  solbakken.  109 

says  so  only  when  he  is  drunk.  And  then  he 
cries,  too,  cries  so  that  it  hails,  about  nothing 
in  the  world  ;  for  what  should  he  have  to  cry 
about  ?  He  has  not  stolen  a  shilling  from  any 
one,  nor  done  a  single  one  of  the  wild  things 
many  others  do;  so  he  really  has  nothing  to  cry 
about.  Nevertheless,  he  does  cry,  and  cries  so 
that  it  hails.  And  if  you  should  see  him  cry 
never  believe  in  it,  for  it  is  only  when  he  is 
di  unk,  and  then  he  is  not  to  be  noticed." 

Here  Aslak  fell  back  on  the  stool  in  a  loud  fit 
of  weeping,  which  was  soon  over,  for  he  dropped 
asleep. 

"  Now  the  swine  is  drunk,"  said  the  man  on 
the  bed  ;  "  that  is  the  way  he  always  lies  blub- 
bering in  his  sleep." 

"  That  was  horrid,"  said  the  women,  and 
arose  to  go  away. 

"  I  have  never  heard  him  tell  anything  dif- 
ferent when  he  was  allowed  to  choose  for  him- 
self," now  said  an  old  man,  over  by  the  door, 
getting  up.  "  The  Lord  knows  why  folks  will 
listen  to  him,"  he  added,  looking  at  the  bride. 


CHAPTER  V. 

Some  went  out ;  others  tried  to  get  the  fid- 
dler to  come  in  again,  that  the  dancing  might 
begin  ;  but  the  fiddler  was  asleep  in  a  corner 
of  the  passage,  and  a  few  begged  for  him  that 
he  might  be  left  in  peace.  "  Since  Lars,  his 
comrade,"  they  said,  "  was  hurt  in  the  fight, 
Ole  had  been  obliged  to  hold  out  over  twenty- 
four  hours." 

The  men  had  arrived  at  the  gard  with  Thor- 
bjorn's  horse  and  things ;  his  horse  was  hitched 
to  another  cart,  since,  in  spite  of  all  urging,  he 
would  insist  on  going  again.  It  was  the  bride- 
groom, in  especial,  who  tried  to  detain  him. 
♦'  There  may,  perhaps,  not  be  as  much  happi- 
ness for  me  here  as  it  would  seem,"  said  he ; 
and  this  suggested  a  thought  to  Thorbjorn  ; 
but  he  nevertheless  resolved  to  leave  before 
evening  came.  When  they  saw  that  he  was 
firm,  they  scattered  over  the  grounds  ;  there 
were  many  people  present,  but  there  was  an 
oppressive  stillness,  and,  indeed,  little  appear- 
ance of  a  wedding.     Thorbjorn  needed  a  new 


synnOve  solbakken.  Ill 

harness-pin,  and  went  off  to  find  one  ;  at  the 
gard  there  was  no  suitable  material,  and  so  he 
went  a  little  outside,  and  came  to  a  wood-shed, 
which  he  entered  slowly  and  quietly,  for  the 
words  of  the  bridegroom  haunted  him.  He 
found  what  he  wanted,  but  furthermore,  with- 
out being  conscious  of  what  he  was  doing,  he 
seated  himself  against  the  one  wall,  with  a 
knife  and  the  pin  in  his  hand.  Then  he  heard 
a  groaning  near  by ;  it  was  on  the  other  side 
of  the  thin  wall,  in  the  carriage-house,  and 
Thorbjorn  listened. 

*'  Is  that  —  really  —  you?"  he  heard,  uttered 
with  a  long  interval  between  the  words,  and  by 
a  man  who  spoke  with  difficulty.  Then  he 
heard  some  one  weeping,  but  that  was  not  a 
man. 

"  Oh,  why  did  you  come  here  ?  "  was  asked ; 
and  it  must  have  been  by  the  one  who  was 
weeping,  for  the  voice  choked  with  tears. 

"  Hm  !  At  whose  wedding  should  I  play,  if 
it  was  not  at  yours  ?  "  said  the  first. 

"  It  must  be  Lars,  the  fiddler,  who  lies  there," 
thought  Thorbjorn.  Lars  was  a  strong,  hand- 
some fellow,  whose  old  mother  was  tenant  of  a 
houseman's  place,  belonging  to  the  gard.  But 
the  other  must  be  the  bride. 

"  Why  have  you  never  spoken  ?  "  said  she,  in 


112  SYNNdVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

a  smothered  voice,  but  slowly,  as  though  deeply 
moved. 

"  I  did  not  think  it  was  necessary,  between 
us  two,"  was  his  short  answer. 

There  was  silence  for  a  while ;  then  she  be- 
gan again  :  "  You  knew,  though,  that  he  came 
to  see  me." 

"  I  thought  you  were  stronger." 

He  heard  nothing  now  but  weeping  ;  finally, 
she  burst  out  once  more,  "  Why  did  you  not 
speak  ? " 

"  It  would  have  been  of  little  use  for  old 
Birthe's  son  to  speak  to  the  daughter  of  Nord- 
houg,"  was  answered,  after  a  pause,  during 
which  he  drew  his  breath  heavily,  and  often 
groaned.     A  reply  was  waited  for. 

"  We  have  had  our  eyes  on  each  other  for 
many  a  year,"  came  at  last. 

"  You  were  so  proud,  I  did  not  exactly  dare 
speak  to  you.  Yet  there  was  nothing  in  the 
world  I  desired  more.  I  expected  every  day 
—  when  we  met  —  I  thought  the  next  time 
I  would  offer  myself.  Then  I  thought  you 
slighted  me." 

All  was  still  again.  Thorbjorn  heard  no 
reply,  no  weeping  ;  nor  did  he  even  hear  the 
Kick  man's  breathing. 

Thorbjorn  thought  of  the  bridegroom,  whom 


synnOvk  solbakkkn.  113 

he  believed  to  be  a  worthy  man,  and  he  felt 
troubled  for  him.  Then  she,  too,  said,  "I  am 
afraid  he  will  have  little  happiness  in  me,  — 
he,  who  "  — 

"  He  is  a  good  man,"  said  the  sick  one,  and 
began  to  break  down  again,  for  his  chest,  no 
doubt,  pained  him. 

It  seemed  as  though  this  gave  her  pain,  too, 
for  she  said,  "It  is  pretty  hard  for  you  now 
—  but  —  we  would  most  likely  never  have 
chanced  to  talk  together,  had  not  this  thing 
happened.  When  you  struck  Knud,  I  under- 
stood you  for  the  first  time." 

"  I  could  bear  it  no  longer,"  said  he ;  and 
then,  presently,  "  Knud  is  base." 

<'  He  is  not  good,"  said  Knud's  sister. 

They  were  silent  for  a  while  ;   then  he  said, 
'  I  wonder  if  I  shall   ever  get  over  this.     Ah, 
well,  though,  it  is  all  one  now." 

"  If  you  have  a  hard  time,  it  is  worse  for 
me,"  and  hereupon  followed  convulsive  weep- 
ing. 

"  Are  you  going  ?  "  asked  he. 

"  Yes,"  was  the  reply  ;  and  then,  "  Ah,  woe, 
woe  is  me  !     What  a  life  this  will  be  I  " 

"  Do  not  cry  so  !  '  said  he.    '-'■■  The  Lord  will 
soon  put  an   end  to  it  for  me,  and  then  you 
Bhall  see  that  it  will  be  better  for  you,  too." 
8 


114  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

"  Alas,  alas,  if  you  bad  only  spoken  ! "  she 
cried,  in  a  suppressed  voice,  and  as  though  she 
were  wringing  her  hands. 

Thorbjorn  thought  she  must  either  have  gone 
away  at  the  same  time,  or  at  least  be  unable  tc 
talk  longer ;  for  he  heard  nothing  for  a  while, 
and  went  away. 

Of  the  first  person  he  met  in  the  gard  Thor- 
bjorn asked,  "  What  has  happened  between 
Lars,  the  fiddler,  and  Knud  Nordhoug  ?  " 

"Ha!  Between  them?  Well,"  said  Per, 
the  houseman,  wrinkling  his  face  as  though  he 
wanted  to  hide  something  in  the  folds,  "  you 
may  well  ask,  for  it  was  little  enough  :  Knud 
only  inquired  of  Lars  whether  his  fiddle  gave 
out  good  tones  at  this  wedding." 

Just  then  the  bride  went  past  them.  She  had 
her  face  averted,  but  when  she  heard  Lars  men- 
tioned she  turned  it,  and  showed  them  a  pair  of 
large  red  eyes,  which  were  unsteady  in  theit 
gaze ;  otherwise  her  countenance  was  very  cold, 
so  cold  that  Thorbjorn  did  not  recognize  her 
words  again  in  it.  He  began  then  to  under- 
stand more. 

Farther  on  in  the  gard  the  horse  stood  wait- 
ing. Thorbjorn  fastened  in  his  pin,  and  looked 
around  for  the  bridegroom,  in  order  to  take  hia 
leave.     He  did  not  feel  like  searching  for  him 


synnOve  solbakken.  Hi} 

Boon  saw  that  he  was  not  coining,  and  took  his 
Beat  upon  the  cart.  ThtMi  there  was  heard  the 
sound  of  noisy  talking  and  shouting  on  the  left 
side  of  the  gard,  over  in  the  direction  of  the 
barn.  There  was  a  great  crowd  pouring  out  of 
the  barn ;  a  large  man,  who  walked  on  in  ad- 
vance, was  crying,  "  Where  is  he  ?  Is  he  hid- 
ing ?     Where  is  he  ?  " 

"  There,  there ! "  said  some. 

"  Do  not  let  him  come  here,"  said  others ; 
"only  mischief  will  arise  from  it." 

"  Is  that  Knud  ? "  inquired  Thorbjorn  of  a 
little  boy  who  stood  at  the  side  of  his  cart. 

"  Yes ;  he  is  drunk,  and  when  he  is  he  always 
wants  to  fight." 

Thorbjorn  was  already  seated  on  his  load,  and 
now  he  whipped  up  his  horse. 

"  No,  stop,  comrade  !  "  he  heard  behind  him. 
He  reined  in  his  horse,  but  as  it  started  off  in 
Bpite  of  this,  he  let  it  go.  "  Ho !  Are  you 
afraid,  Thorbjorn  Granliden  ? "  was  shouted 
nearer  him.  Now  he  reined  in  still  more  j&rml}', 
but  did  not  look  back. 

"  Get  down  now,  and  come  into  good  com- 
pany !  "  some  one  cried. 

Thorbjorn  turned  his  head.  "  Th^nk  you,  I 
must  go  home,"  said  he. 

Now  they  consulted  together  a  little,  and  im- 


116  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

mediately  the  whole  crowd  flocked  to  the  cart. 
Knud  went  forward  to  the  horse  ;  he  first 
patted  it,  then  took  it  by  the  head  to  look  at 
it.  Knud  was  very  tall ;  had  light  but  straight 
hair,  and  a  snub  nose ;  the  mouth  was  large 
and  heavy ;  his  eyes  were  light  blue,  but  bold. 
He  bore  little  resemblance  to  his  sister;  yet 
there  was  something  about  the  mouth  which 
was  similar,  and  he  had  the  same  kind  of  square 
forehead,  but  smaller,  although  all  her  fine 
features  were  coarse  with  him. 

"  What  will  you  take  for  your  nag  ?  "  asked 
Knud. 

"  I  do  not  want  to  sell  it,"  said  Thorbjorn. 

"  You  think,  perhaps,  I  cannot  pay  for  it," 
said  Knud. 

"  I  do  not  know  whether  you  can  or  not." 

"  So  ?  You  doubt  it  ?  You  had  better  take 
care,"  said  Knud. 

The  lad  who  had  stood  against  the  wall  in 
the  house  fingering  the  hair  of  those  girls  now 
said  to  a  neighbor,  "  Knud  really  does  not  dare 
this  time." 

This  Knud  heard.  "I  dare  not?  Who  says 
eo?     I  dare  not?"  he  shrieked. 

More  and  more  came  flocking  up.  "  Make 
way  I  See  the  horse !  "  shouted  Thorbjorn,  and 
tracked  his  whip ;  he  wanted  to  start. 


SYNNOVrJ   SOLBAKKEN.  117 

"Are  you  saying  *  make  way'  to  me?"  asked 
Knud. 

"  I  spoke  to  the  horse ;  I  must  go  on,"  said 
Thorbjciru,  but  did  not  tnru  aside  himself, 
either. 

'•  What  I  will  you  drive  right  over  me  ?  ' 
asked  Knud. 

"Then  move  away!"  and  the  horse  had  to 
throw  back  his  head,  else  it  would  have  sent  it 
right  against  Knud's  breast.  Then  Knud  took 
the  horse  by  the  bridle,  and  the  animal  that 
remembered  being  held  so  on  the  road,  began 
to  tremble.  This,  however,  touched  Thorbjorn, 
who  repented  what  he  had  done  to  the  horse  ; 
now  he  vented  his  feelings  on  Knud  ;  for  he 
started  up  with  the  wliip  in  his  hand,  and  gave 
Knnd  a  blow  on  the  head. 

"'  Do  you  strike  ?  "  shrieked  Knud,  and  came 
nearer.      Thorbjorn  sprang  from  the  load. 

"  You  are  a  villain  1  "  said  he,  pale  as  death, 
and  threw  the  reins  to  the  lad  from  the  house, 
as  he  had  come  forward  and  offered  his  serv- 
ices. 

But  the  old  man  who  had  risen  from  his 
seat  over  by  the  door,  when  Aslak  was  through 
with  his  stor}',  now  approached  Thorbjorn,  and 
pulled  him  by  the  arm.  "  Sa?mund  Granliden 
IS  too  good  a  man  to  have  his  son  fight  witl' 
«uch  a  bully,"  said  he. 


118  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

This  quieted  Thorbjorn  down,  but  Knud 
shouted,  "la  bully  ?  That  he  is  as  well  as  I, 
and  my  father  is  just  as  good  as  his !  Come 
on  !  It  is  absurd  that  the  parish  folks  do  not 
know  which  of  us  two  is  the  champion,"  he 
added,  and  pulled  off  his  neck-tie. 

"  We  will  test  that  soon  enough,"  said  Thor- 
bjorn. 

Then  the  man  who  had  been  lying  on  the 
bed  before  said,  "  They  are  like  two  cats  ;  they 
have  to  growl  courage  into  each  other,  both  of 
them." 

Thorbjorn  heard  this,  but  made  no  reply. 
One  and  another  of  the  crowd  laughed  ;  others 
said  it  was  abominable  to  have  all  these  fights 
at  this  wedding,  and  to  pick  a  quarrel  with  a 
stranger,  who  wanted  to  go  away  peaceably. 
Thorbjorn  looked  around  for  his  horse  ;  it  was 
his  intention  to  drive  off.  But  the  lad  who 
had  taken  charge  of  it  had  turned  it  round,  and 
led  it  away  quite  a  distance ;  the  lad  himself 
8tood  just  behind  them. 

"  What  are  you  looking  for  ?  "  asked  Knud. 
"  Synnove  is  a  long  way  off  now." 

"  What  is  she  to  you  ?  " 

"  Nothing.  Such  hypocritical  women -folks 
are  nothing  to  me,"  said  Knud.  "  But  perhaps 
it  is  she  who  has  stolen  your  courage  away." 


SYNNOVK    SOLBAKKEN.  119 

This  was  too  much  for  Thorbjorn  ;  they  no- 
ticed that  he  ghmced  around,  to  make  sure  of 
the  lay  of  the  ground.  Now  some  of  the  older 
people  interfered,  and  remarked  that  Knud  had 
done  mischief  enough  for  this  wedding. 

"  He  shall  do  me  none  ! "  said  Thorbjorn 
and  when  they  heard  this  they  were  silent. 

Others  said,  "  Let  them  wrestle,  and  then 
they  will  be  good  friends  ;  these  two  have  long 
enough  been  throwing  spiteful  glances  at  each 
other." 

"  Yes,"  said  one,  "  they  both  want  to  be  first 
in  the  parish  ;  let  us  see  how  it  is." 

"  Have  you  people  seen  anything  of  a  certain 
Thorbjorn  Granliden  about  here  ?  "  remarked 
Knud.  "  I  thought  he  was  at  the  gard,  just 
now." 

"  Yes,  here  he  is,"  said  Thorbjorn,  and  at  the 
same  time  he  gave  Knud  a  blow  on  the  right 
ear  that  sent  him  reeling  against  some  men 
who  stood  there.  Now  all  was  still.  Knud  got 
up  again,  and  darted  forward,  without  saying  a 
word.  Thorbjorn  was  ready  for  him.  There 
now  followed  a  long  hand-to-hand  fight,  each 
trying  to  get  at  the  other  ;  but  both  were  well 
accustomed  to  hold  off  an  opponent.  Thor- 
bjorn's  blows  fell  rather  oftener,  and  some  said 
were  somewhat  more  severe. 


120  SYNNOVE   SOLliAKKEN. 

"  There,  Knud  has  found  his  man,"  said  he 
who  had  takun  the  horse.     Make  way !  " 

The  women  fled  ;  only  one  stood  high  up  on 
a  step,  in  order  to  see  better  ;  it  was  the  bride. 
Thorbjorn  caught  a  glimpse  of  her,  and  hesi- 
tated a  little  ;  then  he  saw  a  knife  in  Knud's 
hand,  remembered  her  saying  that  Knud  was 
not  good,  and  with  a  well-aimed  blow  he  hit 
Knud's  arm  on  the  wrist,  making  the  knife 
drop,  and  paralyzing  the  arm. 

"  Oh,  how  you  hit !  "  said  Knud. 

"  Do  you  think  so?  "  said  the  other,  and  now 
rushed  at  him. 

Knud  was  at  a  disadvantage,  having  the  use 
of  only  one  arm ,  he  was  lifted  up  and  borne  on, 
but  he  made  resistance  before  he  was  pros- 
trated. He  was  several  times  thrown  to  the 
ground,  with  such  force  that  any  one  else 
would  have  yielded,  but  his  was  a  good  back. 
Thorbjorn  moved  on  with  Knud ;  the  people 
gave  way,  but  Thorbjorn  kept  coming  on  with 
him  ;  and  thus  it  continued  around  the  entire 
gard,  until  they  came  to  the  steps,  where  Thor- 
bjorn tossed  Knud  once  more  into  the  air,  and 
flung  him  down  with  such  violence  that  his 
knees  gave  way,  and  Knud  fell  across  the  stone 
slab,  so  that  it  sang  within  him.  He  lay  there 
without  stirring,  gave  vent  to  a  deep  groan 


SYXNOVE   SOLBAKKEN.  121 

and  closed  liis  eyes ;  Thorbjiiru  striiigliteued 
himself,  and  looked  up  ;  his  eyes  fell  directly 
on  the  bride,  who  stood  motionless,  and  looked 
•  '11.  "Take  something  and  lay  it  under  his 
head,"'  said  she,  turned,  and  went  in. 

Two  old  women  went  by  ;  one  of  them  said 
to  the  other,  "  Good  God  !  there  lies  some  one 
again  !     Who  is  it  now  ?  " 

A  man  answered,  "  It  is  Knud  Nordhoug." 

Then  the  older  woman  said,  "  Well,  perhaps 
there  will  be  less  of  fighting  after  this.  They 
might  have  some  other  use  to  put  their  strength 
to." 

"  That  was  a  true  word  you  said,  Randi," 
said  the  first.  "  The  Lord  help  them  on  so 
far  that  they  can  look  beyond  one  another,  and 
up  to  something  betterJ" 

This  had  a  curious  effect  on  Thorbjorn's 
mind  ;  he  had  not  uttered  a  word,  but  still 
stood  motionless,  watching  those  who  were 
busied  with  Ivnud.  Several  spoke  to  him,  but 
he  made  no  reply.  He  turned  away  from 
them,  and  fell  into  a  reverie  ;  Synnove  was  up- 
permost in  it,  and  he  became  much  ashamed. 
He  wondered  what  explanation  he  should  give 
her,  and  he  thought  that  it  was,  after  all,  not 
BO  easy  for  hira  to  stop  fighting  as  he  had  be- 
aeved.     Just  then,  he  heard  some  one  behind 


122  SYNNOVE   SOLBAlvKEN. 

him  say,  "  Beware,  Thorbjoru  !  "  but  befoiT  ne 
could  turn,  he  was  seized  by  the  shoulders  from 
behind,  was  bent  down,  and  felt  nothing  but  a 
burning  pain,  the  locality  of  which  he  did  not 
precisely  know.  He  heard  voices  about  him ; 
was  conscious  that  some  one  was  driving ;  even 
thought,  at  times,  that  he  was  driving  himself, 
but  was  not  sure  of  it. 

This  lasted  a  very  long  time.  It  grew  cold, 
soon  warm  again,  and  then  he  felt  so  light,  so 
light,  that  he  seemed  to  be  floating.  And  now 
he  understood  it :  he  was  borne  on  the  tree- 
tops,  from  one  to  the  other,  and  thus  went  up 
the  slope  ;  higher  up,  as  far  as  the  sseter  ;  still 
higher  up,  as  far  as  the  highest  mountain. 
There  Synnove  bowed  over  him,  and  wept,  and 
said  that  he  should  have  spoken.  She  wept 
sorely,  and  said  that  he  must  have  seen,  him- 
self, how  Knud  Nordhoug  got  in  his  way,  con- 
tinually in  his  way,  and  so  she  was  obliged  to 
take  Knud.  And  then  she  stroked  him  gently 
down  one  side,  so  that  it  grew  warm  there,  and 
she  wept  until  his  clothes  became  wet  in  the 
place  where  her  tears  fell.  But  Aslak  sat  on 
his  heels  upon  a  great  peaked  stone,  and  set 
fire  to  the  tree-tops  round  about  him,  so  that 
they  crackled  and  burned,  and  the  twigs  drifted 
about  him  ;  then  he  laughed,  with  wide  gaping 


SYNNdVE   SOLBAKKEN.  12;i 

mouth,  and  said,  "  It  is  not  I,  it  is  my  mother, 
who  is  doing  this  !  "  And  Saimund,  his  father, 
stood  a  little  to  one  side,  and  tossed  up  bags  of 
grain  so  higli  that  the  clouds  drew  them  up  to 
themselves,  and  spread  out  the  grain  like  a 
mist;  and  it  seemed  strange  to  him  that  the 
grain  could  float  out  over  the  whole  sky.  When 
he  looked  over  at  Saemund  himself,  the  latter 
had  grown  so  small,  so  very  small,  that  at  last 
he  scarcely  reached  above  the  ground ;  but  still 
he  went  on  tossing  the  bags  up  higher  and 
higher,  and  said,  "Do  that  like  me,  if  you 
can !  "  Far  away,  in  the  clouds,  was  the  church, 
and  the  fair  woman  from  Solbakken  stood  up 
in  the  steeple,  waving  an  orange-colored  hand- 
kerchief in  one  hand  and  a  hymn-book  in  the 
other,  and  said,  "  Hither  you  shall  not  come, 
until  you  have  laid  aside  fighting  and  swear- 
ing." And  when  he  came  to  look  there,  it  was 
not  the  church,  but  Solbakken,  and  the  sun 
shone  so  brightly  on  all  the  hundred  window- 
panes  that  it  hurt  his  eyes,  and  he  had  to  close 
them  tight. 

"  Take  care,  take  care,  Saemund  !  "  he  heard 
and  was  awakened  as  though  from  slumber  bj 
being   carried   onward  •   and   when   he   looked 
About  him  he  had  come  into  the  family-room 
ttt  Grauliden.     A   great  fire  was   burning   on 


124  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

the  hearth  ;  his  mother  stood  beside  him  and 
wept;  bis  father  just  then  put  his  hands  under 
him ;  he  wanted  to  carry  him  into  a  side  room. 
Then  his  father  laid  him  gently  down  again. 
"  There  is  still  life  in  liim  I  "  said  he,  with  a 
quivering  voice,  and  turned  to  the  mother. 

She  burst  out,  "  The  Lord  help  me !  he  is 
looking  up !  Thorbjoru,  Thorbjorn  !  My 
blessed  boy,  what  have  they  done  to  you  ? " 
and  she  bent  over  him  and  stroked  his  cheek, 
while  her  warm  tears  fell  on  his  face. 

Ssemund  wiped  his  eyes  with  one  arm,  then 
drew  the  mother  tenderly  aside.  "  I  might  just 
as  well  take  him  at  once,"  said  he ;  and  he  took 
firm  hold  under  the  shoulders  with  one  hand, 
and  a  little  farther  down  the  back  with  the 
other.  "  You  hold  his  head,  mother,  if  he  has 
not  strength  to  carry  it  himself."  She  walked 
on  before  and  supported  his  head  ;  Ssemund 
tried  to  keep  step  with  her,  and  soon  Thor- 
bjorn lay  on  the  bed  in  the  other  room.  After 
they  had  covered  him  and  placed  him  just  right, 
Sfemund  asked  whether  the  boy  had  started. 

"  There  he  is  !  "  said  the  mother,  and  pointed 
toward  the  window. 

Ssemund  opened  the  window,  and  called  out^ 
''  If  you  are  there  in  an  hour  you  shall  have 
your  year's  wages  doubled !  It  does  not  mat- 
ter if  you  break  the  horse's  wind." 


SYNNOVK   SOLBAKKEN.  125 

He  went  over  to  the  bed  again.  Thorhjorn 
fixed  on  him  his  Uirge  clear  eyes ;  the  father 
was  forced  to  return  the  gaze,  and  then  his  own 
grew  moist.  "  I  knew  it  would  end  so,"  said 
he  softly,  turned  and  went  out. 

The  mother  sat  on  a  stool  at  the  foot  of  the 
bed  and  wept,  but  she  did  not  speak.  Thor- 
bjorn  wanted  to  talk,  but  he  felt  that  it  was 
difficult,  and  therefore  he  was  silent.  But  he 
stared  incessantly  at  his  mother,  and  she  had 
never  seen  such  lustre  in  his  eyes,  nor  had  they 
t-ver  been  so  beautiful,  which  seemed  to  her  a 
bad  omen.  "  May  the  Lord  help  you  ! "  she 
burst  out,  at  last.  "  I  know  that  Stemund  will 
break  down  completely  the  day  you  leave  us." 
Tiiorbjorn  looked  at  her  with  immovable  eyes 
and  face.  That  look  went  right  through  her, 
and  she  began  to  say  the  Lord's  Prayer  for 
him  ;  for  she  thought  his  time  might  be  short. 
While  she  sat  there  it  ran  through  her  mind 
how  dear  he,  beyond  the  others,  had  been  to 
them  all ;  and  now  none  of  his  brothers  and 
sisters  were  at  home.  She  sent  word  up  to  the 
sa?ter  for  Ingrid  and  a  younger  brother  ;  then 
came  back  and  seated  herself  as  before.  He 
still  looked  at  her,  and  that  look  was  to  her  a 
psalm,  which  gently  guided  her  thoughts  to  bet- 
ter things  ;  and  old  Ingebjorg  grew  very  devout, 


126  synnOve  solbakkex. 

brought  forth  the  Bible,  and  said,  ''  Now  I  will 
read  aloud  to  you,  and  it  will  do  you  good." 
And  as  she  had  no  spectacles  at  hand  she  opened 
at  a  place  that  she  had  nearly  known  by  heart 
since  she  was  a  girl,  and  this  was  in  the  Gospel 
of  John.  She  was  not  sure  that  he  heard  her  ; 
for  he  lay  motionless  as  before,  merely  staring 
at  her ;  but  still  she  read  on,  if  not  for  him,  at 
least  for  herself. 

Ingrid  soon  came  home  to  relieve  her  in  the 
watch ;  but  then  Thorbjorn  was  asleep.  Ingrid 
wept  without  ceasing  ;  she  had  commenced  cry- 
ing before  she  left  the  saster,  for  she  thought  of 
Synnove,  to  whom  nothing  had  been  told.  Now 
the  doctor  came  and  examined  him.  He  had 
been  stabbed  with  a  knife  in  the  side,  had  been 
beaten  besides  ;  but  the  doctor  said  nothing,  and 
there  was  no  one  who  questioned  him.  Sob- 
mund  went  with  him  into  the  sick-room,  stood 
there  watching  uninterruptedly  the  doctor's  face, 
went  out  when  he  went,  helped  him  up  in  his 
cariole,  and  touched  his  cap  when  the  doctor 
said  he  would  come  again  the  following  day. 
Then  S^emund  turned  to  his  wife,  who  had  ac- 
companied him :  "  When  that  man  does  not 
3peak,  it  is  alarming."  His  mouth  quivered; 
he  turned  on  his  heel,  and  went  away  across 
the  field. 


synnOve  solbakkkn.  127 

Nc  one  knew  wbat  became  of  hira ;  for  he 
did  not  come  home  that  evening,  nor  in  the 
night  either,  but  appeared  first  the  next  morn- 
ing; and  then  he  seemed  so  gloomy  that  no 
one  dared  ask  him  anything.  He  said  him- 
self, "Well?" 

"He  has  slept,"  said  Ingrid,  "but  he  is  so 
weak  that  he  cannot  raise  a  hand." 

The  father  wanted  to  go  in  and  look  at  him, 
but  he  turned  when  he  came  to  the  door. 

The  doctor  was  there,  and  he  came  the  next 
day,  and  several  days  in  succession.  Thorbjorn 
could  speak,  but  was  not  allowed  to  stir.  In- 
grid sat  most  of  the  time  with  him ;  also  his 
mother  and  younger  brother ;  but  he  did  not 
ask  them  about  anything,  nor  they  him.  The 
father  was  never  in  there.  This  they  saw  the 
patient  noticed ;  every  time  the  door  opened  he 
grew  attentive,  and  they  thought  it  must  be  be- 
cause he  was  expecting  his  father.  At  last  In- 
grid asked  if  he  would  not  like  to  see  others  of 
ihe  family.  "  Oh,  they  most  likely  do  not  want 
to  see  me,"  replied  he.  This  was  told  to  See- 
mund,  who  made  no  immediate  reply  ;  but  that 
day  he  was  away  when  the  doctor  came.  When 
the  doctor  had  proceeded  a  piece  along  the  road, 
he  saw  Sa^raund,  who  sat  by  the  wayside  wait- 
ing for  him.  After  having  greeted  him,  Sa>- 
mund  inquired  about  his  son. 


128  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

"  He  has  been  roughly  handled,"  was  the 
short  reply. 

''  Will  be  get  over  it  ?  "  asked  Ssemund,  and 
fell  to  adjusting  the  horse's  saddle-girth. 

"  Thank  you,  that  is  all  right,"  said  the  doc- 
tor. 

"  It  was  not  tight  enough,"  replied  Saemund. 

There  was  a  brief  silence,  in  which  the  doc- 
tor looked  at  him ;  but  Ssemund  was  zealously 
tightening  the  girth,  and  did  not  look  up. 

"  You  asked  whether  he  would  get  over  it ; 
yes,  I  think  he  will,"  said  the  doctor,  slowly. 

Ssemund  glanced  up,  hastily.  "  Is  there  hope 
of  life?"  asked  he. 

"  There  has  been  for  several  days,"  replied 
the  doctor. 

Then  a  few  tears  trickled  down  from  Sae- 
mund's  eyes  ;  he  strove  to  brush  them  away, 
but  they  came  again.  "It  is  really  a  shame 
that  I  am  so  fond  of  the  lad,"  he  gasped ;  "  but 
you  see,  doctor,  a  finer  fellow  there  has  never 
been  in  the  parish  !  " 

The  doctor  was  touched.  "  Why  have  you 
not  wished  to  know  anything  before  ? "  he 
asked. 

"  I  have  not  had  the  courage  to  hear  it,"  re- 
plied Ssemund,  and  had  another  struggle  with 
his    tears,    which    he   could    not   force    back 


synnOve  sole ak ken.  129 

"  And  then  there  \v»n-e  the  women-folks,"  he 
continued  ;  "  they  were  constantly  on  the  k)ok- 
out  to  see  whether  I  would  ask,  and  then  I 
could  not."  The  doctor  gave  him  time  to  com 
pose  himself,  and  then  Ssemund  looked  jfixedly 
at  him.  "  Will  he  get  his  health  back  again  ?  " 
asked  he,  suddenly. 

"  In  a  certain  way,  although  we  cannot  yet 
be  sure  of  it." 

Then  Ssemund  grew  calm  and  thoughtful. 
"  In  a  certain  way,"  he  muttered.  He  stood 
looking  down,  and  the  doctor  would  not  disturb 
him,  because  there  was  something  about  the 
man  which  forbade  it.  Suddenly  Saemund 
raised  his  head.  "  Thank  you  for  the  informa- 
tion," said  he,  held  out  his  hand,  and  started 
for  home. 

Meanwhile,  Ingrid  was  sitting  with  the  pa- 
tient. "If  you  feel  able  to  listen,  I  will  tell 
you  something  about  father,"  said  she. 

"Tell  me,"  rephed  Thorbjoru. 

"  Well,  then,  the  first  evening  the  doctor  had 
been  here  father  disappeared,  and  no  one  knew 
where  he  was.  Now  it  seems  that  he  had  gone 
over  to  the  wedding-party,  and  all  the  people 
there  felt  ill  at  ease  when  he  came  in.  They 
Bay  that  he  sat  down  among  them  and  drank 
with  them,  and  the  bridegroom  tells  that  he 
» 


130  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

thinks  he  grew  half  tipsy.  Then  first  he  began 
to  question  about  the  fight,  and  got  the  full 
particulars  as  to  how  it  had  happened.  Knud 
came  in ;  father  wanted  to  have  him  tell  all 
about  it,  and  made  him  go  with  him  out  to  the 
spot  where  you  two  wrestled.  All  the  people 
went  with  them.  Knud  then  told  how  vou  had 
treated  him  after  you  had  lamed  his  hand  ;  but 
when  Knud  did  not  want  to  say  anything  more, 
father  di-ew  himself  up,  and  asked  if  this  was 
the  way  it  went  on  afterward,  —  and  at  the 
same  time  he  seized  Knud  about  the  chest, 
raised  him,  and  laid  him  down  ou  the  stone, 
which  still  had  your  blood  on  it.  He  held  him 
down  with  his  left  hand,  and  drew  out  his  knife 
with  the  right.  Knud  changed  color,  and  all 
the  guests  were  silent.  There  were  people 
there  who  saw  father  shed  tears,  but  he  did 
nothing  to  Knud.  Knud  himself  did  not  stir. 
Father  then  lifted  Knud  up,  but  laid  him  down 
again  after  a  while.  '  It  is  hard  to  let  you  go,' 
he  said,  and  stood  staring  at  him,  while  he  still 
held  him. 

"  Two  old  women  went  past,  and  one  of  them 
said,  '  Think  of  your  children,  Saemund  Gran- 
liden  ! '  They  say  that  father  at  once  let  go  of 
Knud,  and  that  pretty  soon  after  he  was  gone 
from  the    gard ;    but  Knud    left    the  wedding 


SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN.  131 

made  his  way  ou  from  house  to  house,  and  was 
Been  there  no  more."' 

Scarcely  was  Ingrid  through  with  her  narra- 
tion when  the  door  opened;  some  one  looked 
in,  and  it  was  the  father.  She  went  out  at 
once,  and  Stemund  came  in.  What  father  and 
Bon  then  talked  about  no  one  ever  knew ;  the 
mother,  who  stood  up  against  the  door  that  sho 
might  listen,  thought  once  that  she  heard  them 
speaking  about  whether  Thorbjorn  could  re- 
cover his  health  or  not.  But  she  was  not  sure 
of  it,  nor  did  she  like  to  go  in  as  long  as  Sae- 
mund  was  there. 

When  Saemund  came  out  he  was  ver}'^  gentle, 
and  rather  red  about  the  eyes.  "  He  will  be 
spared  to  us,"  he  said  to  Ingebjorg,  as  he  passed 
by ;  "  but  the  Lord  only  knows  whether  he  will 
get  his  health  back  again."  Ingebjorg  began 
to  cry,  and  went  out  with  her  husband  ;  on  the 
store-house  steps  they  sat  down,  side  by  side, 
and  many  things  were  talked  over  between  the 
two. 

But  when  Ingrid  came  softly  in  again  to 
Thorbjorn,  he  lay  there  with  a  little  note  in  one 
hand,  and  said  calmly  and  slowly,  "  This  you 
uiay  give   to    Synnove  the  next  time  you  see 


uer." 


When  Ingrid  had  read  what  was  in  it  slie 


132  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

turned    away   and   wept;    for    the    note    ran 
thus :  — 

"  To   the   highly   esteemed    maiden,    Synnove,    Guttonn^s 
daughter,  Solhakken :  — 

"  When  you  have  read  these  Imes,  all  must 
be  over  between  us  two.  For  I  am  not  the  one 
you  ought  to  have.    The  Lord  be  with  us  both. 

"  ThORBJORN,    SiEMUND'S   SON,    GrANLIDEN." 


CHAPTER   VI. 

Synnovb  had  learned  of  the  disaster  the  day 
after  Thorbjorn  had  been  at  the  wedding.  Hia 
younger  brother  had  been  sent  up  to  the  sseter 
with  word  about  it ;  but  Ingrid  had  detained 
him  out  in  the  passage,  just  as  he  was  starting, 
and  had  charged  him  with  what  he  was  to  say. 
Synnove,  therefore,  only  knew  that  Thorbjorn 
had  overturned  his  load,  and  that  he  therefore 
had  been  obliged  to  go  up  to  Nordhoug  for 
help ;  that  Knud  and  he  had  met,  and  that 
Thorbjorn  had  been  somewhat  hurt.  He  was  in 
bed,  but  it  was  nothing  dangerous.  This  was 
news  calculated  to  make  Synnove  more  vexed 
than  alarmed.  And  the  more  she  thought 
about  it,  the  more  disheartened  she  became. 
Whatever  he  might  promise,  he  was  sure  to  act 
so  that  her  parents  would  have  some  fault  to 
find  with  him.  But  they  two  ought  not  to  be 
separated  now,  any  way,  thought  Synnove. 

There  were  not  many  messages  sent  up  to 
the  seeter,  and  so  time  dragged  before  Synnove 
got  further  news.     The  uncertainty  weighed 


134  SYKNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

heavily  upon  her  mind,  and  as  lugrid  did  not 
come  back  again,  there  must  be  something 
amiss.  She  was  not  able  to  sing  the  cattle 
home  in  the  evening,  as  she  had  been  in  the 
habit  of  doing,  and  she  did  not  sleep  well  at 
night,  for  she  missed  Ingrid.  The  effect  of 
this  was  that  she  felt  weary  by  day,  and  this 
did  not  make  her  heart  any  lighter.  She  went 
about  her  daily  duties,  scoured  the  wooden 
pans  and  bowls,  made  the  cheese,  and  prepared 
the  curds,  but  took  little  satisfaction  in  it ;  and 
both  Thorbjorn's  younger  brother  and  the  lad 
who  tended  the  herds  with  him  felt  sure  now 
that  there  must  be  something  between  her  and 
Thorbjorn,  which  fmuiished  them  -with  a  theme 
for  many  conversations  up  in  the  pasture. 

The  afternoon  of  the  eighth  day  after  Ingrid 
had  been  summoned  home  she  felt  more  op- 
pressed than  ever.  So  long  a  time  had  now 
passed  away,  and  still  no  tidings.  She  left  her 
work  to  sit  down  and  gaze  over  the  parish,  for 
this  seemed  to  her  a  sort  of  company,  and  she 
did  not  want  to  be  alone  now.  As  she  sat 
there,  she  grew  very  tired,  laid  her  head  down 
jn  her  arm,  and  directly  fell  asleep;  but  the 
sun  scorched,  and  it  was  a  restless  sleep.  She 
was  over  at  Solbakken,  up  in  the  loft,  where 
her  things  were,  and  Avhere  she  used  to  sleep 


SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN.  136 

from  the  flowers  in  the  garden  there  was  wafte'l 
up  a  most  delicious  fragrance,  although  no 
that  which  she  was  accustomed  to,  but  some- 
thing different,  almost  like  that  of  heather, 
"  What  can  this  come  from  ?  "  she  thought,  and 
bowed  her  head  down  out  of  the  open  window. 
Yes,  truly,  there  stood  Thorbjorn,  down  in  the 
garden,  planting  heather.  "  Why,  my  dear, 
what  are  you  doing  ?  "  asked  she.  "  Ob,  the 
flowers  will  not  grow,"  replied  he,  and  went  on 
working  iij  the  garden.  This  made  her  sorry 
for  the  flowers,  and  she  finally  begged  him  to 
bring  them  up  to  her.  "  Yes,  I  will,  if  you 
wish,"  said  he,  and  then  he  gathered  them  up, 
and  came  toward  the  house  with  them.  But 
she  did  not  seem  to  be  in  the  loft  any  more,  for 
he  could  come  right  in  to  where  she  was.  At 
that  moment  her  mother  appeared.  "  Good  gra- 
cious !  Is  that  horrid  Graulid  boy  coming  in 
here  to  you  ?  "  cried  the  mother,  as  she  sprang 
forward,  and  stationed  herself  directly  in  his 
way.  But  he  insisted  upon  coming  in,  not- 
withstanding this;  and  now  a  struggle  arose 
between  the  two.  "  Mother,  mother !  he  is 
only  bringing  my  flowers  back  to  me !  "  said 
Synnove,  beseechingly,  and  wept,  "  Oh,  that 
makes  no  difference,"  said  the  mother,  and  con- 
tinued to  struggle.     And  Synnove  was  fright- 


136  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKKN. 

ened,  terribly  frightened,  for  she  knew  not 
which  of  them  she  wanted  to  win  ;  but  neither 
of  them  must  lose.  "  Be  careful  of  my  flow- 
ers I  "  cried  she.  But  they  struggled  now 
harder  than  ever,  and  the  pretty  flowers  were 
strewn  around  everywhere ;  the  mother  trod 
upon  them,  and  so  did  Thorbjorn.  Synnove 
wept.  But  when  Thorbjorn  had  dropped  the 
flowers,  he  looked  so  ugly,  so  very  ugly ;  his 
hair  grew,  his  face,  too  ;  his  eyes  had  a  wicked 
look,  and  he  stuck  long  claws  into  her  mother. 
"  Take  care,  mother !  Do  you  not  see  that  it  is 
some  one  else,  —  take  care !  "  she  shrieked,  and 
made  a  move  to  go  over  and  help  her  mother, 
but  she  could  not  stir  from  the  spot.  Then 
some  one  called  her,  and  called  a  second  time. 
Immediately  Thorbjorn  disappeared,  the  mother 
also.     Then  some  one  cried  again. 

"  Yes  !  "  said  Synnove,  and  awakened. 

"  Synnove  !  "  the  voice  called. 

"  Yes  ! "  answered  she,  and  looked  up. 

"  Where  are  you  ?  "  was  asked. 

"  It  is  mother  who  is  calling,"  thought  Syn- 
nove, as  she  rose,  and  went  back  toward  the 
Bseter  lawn,  where  the  mother  stood,  with  a 
lunch  box  in  one  hand,  and  shading  her  eyes 
with  the  other,  looking  toward  her. 

''  You  were  actually  lying  there  asleep  on 
the  bare  ground  !  "  said  the  mother. 


SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN.  137 

"  I  grew  so  sleepy,"  replied  Synnove,  "  that 
I  just  lay  down  for  a  little  wLile,  and  before  I 
knew  it  I  was  asleep." 

"  You  must  be  careful  not  to  let  such  things 
happen,  my  child.  Here  is  something  for  you 
in  this  box  ;  I  baked  yesterday,  as  father  is 
going  on  a  long  journey." 

But  Synnove  felt  clearly  that  her  mother 
had  not  come  for  this,  and  she  thought  that 
she  had  not  been  dreamino:  of  her  for  nothing:. 
Karen  (that  was  the  mother's  name)  was,  as  has 
been  said  before,  small  of  stature  and  slender, 
had  fair  hair,  and  blue  eyes  that  were  constantly 
in  motion.  She  smiled  a  little  when  she  spoke, 
but  it  was  only  when  she  talked  with  strangers. 
Her  face  had  grown  rather  sharp.  She  was 
quick  in  her  movements,  and  was  always  bus3\ 
Synnove  thanked  her  for  her  gift,  took  off  the 
lid,  and  looked  to  see  what  was  in  the  box. 

"  There,  there  you  can  do  that  another  time," 
said  the  mother.  "  I  noticed  that  vour  bowls 
had  not  been  washed  yet;  you  must  see  to 
l/hat,  my  child,  before  you  take  your  rest." 

"  Yes  ;  but  that  has  only  happened  to-day." 

"  Come,  then,  I  must  help  you,  since  I  am 
here,"  said  the  mother,  and  rolled  up  her  skirts. 
"  You  must  accustom  yourself  to  order,  whether 
you  are  under  my  eyes  or  not." 


138  SYNNOVE  SOLBAKKEN. 

She  moved  on  to  the  dairy,  and  Synnove 
followed  slowly.  They  took  every  article  out 
and  washed  it.  The  mother  then  inspected  all 
the  work,  and  found  that  it  was  not  bad  ;  gave 
much  advice  and  helped  to  clean  up ;  and  thus 
an  hour  or  two  passed.  While  they  were  work- 
ing she  told  what  was  going  on  at  home,  and 
how  busy  she  was  now  and  would  be  until  she 
got  father  off.  Then  she  asked  if  Synnove  re- 
membered to  read  the  word  of  God  before  she 
went  to  bed  at  night.  "  For  you  must  not  for- 
get that,"  she  observed,  "  or  else  the  work  will 
fare  badly  the  next  day." 

As  soon  as  they  were  through,  they  went 
out  on  the  lawn,  and  sat  down  there  to  wait 
for  the  cows.  And  when  they  were  well  seated 
the  mother  inquired  after  Ingrid,  and  asked  if 
she  was  not  soon  coming  up  to  the  dairy  again. 
Synnove  knew  no  more  about  this  than  her 
mother.  "  Aye,  to  think  that  folks  should  act 
BO !  "  said  the  mother ;  and  Synnove  clearly 
understood  that  it  was  not  Ingrid  she  meant. 
She  would  have  liked  to  cliange  the  subject,  but 
had  not  the  courage  to  do  so.  "  They  who 
never  have  our  Lord  in  their  hearts  are  found 
out  by  Him  sometimes  when  they  are  least  ex- 
pecting it,"  continued  the  mother.  Synnove 
5poke  not  a  word.     "  Well,  this  I  have  alway 


SYNNOVK   SOLBAKKEN.  139 

said :  the  boy  will  never  amount  to  anything. 
13 tit  to  act  so  —  it  is  a  shame  !  "  They  were 
sitting  side  side  by  there,  and  gazing  out  over 
the  landscape  beyond  ;  but  they  did  not  look  at 
each  other.  "  Have  you  heard  how  he  is  get- 
ting on  ?  "  asked  the  mother,  and  now  glanced 
hastily  at  her. 

"  No,"  answered  Synnove. 

"  They  say  he  is  in  a  bad  way,"  said  the 
mother. 

Synnove's  heart  grew  faint.  "Is  it,  then, 
serious  ?  "  asked  she. 

"  Oh,  he  was  stabbed  with  a  knife  in  the 
side  ;  and  then  he  had  some  pretty  severe  blows, 
besides." 

Synnove  felt  that  she  was  blushing  crimson  ; 
at  once  she  turned  a  little  more  away,  so  that 
her  mother  could  not  see  her.  "  Well,  it  is 
not  a  very  serious  matter,  I  presume  ? "  said 
she,  as  calmly  as  she  could. 

But  her  motlier  had  observed  that  her  breast 
heaved  violently,  and  so  she  answered,  "  Oh, 
no.     I  cannot  say  that,  either." 

Now  Synnove  began  to  suspect  that  some- 
thing dreadful  had  happened.  "  Is  he  in  bed  ?  " 
she  asked. 

"  Why,  bless  me  1  of  course  he  is  in  bed  I  It 
is  a  pity  for  his  parents,  such  worthy  people  as 


140  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

they  are.  He  has  been  well  brought  up,  too, 
BO  that  the  Lord  has  nothing  to  blame  them 
for."  Synnove  was  now  so  anxious  that  she 
knew  not  what  she  should  do.  Presently  her 
mother  continued,  "  Now  it  proves  to  be  well 
that  no  one  is  bound  to  him.  The  Lord  has 
done  everything  here  also  for  the  best."  Syn- 
nove grew  very  dizzy,  and  it  seemed  as  though 
she  would  glide  down  the  side  of  the  mountain. 
"  Well,  I  always  said  to  father,  God  have 
mercy  on  us  !  said  L  We  have  only  this  one 
daughter,  and  we  must  take  care  of  her.  Now 
he  is  rather  inclined  to  be  too  yielding,  excel- 
lent man  as  he  otherwise  is;  therefore  it  is 
a  good  thing  that  he  takes  counsel  where  he 
finds  it,  and  that  is  in  the  word  of  God." 

But  at  the  mere  thought  of  her  father,  and 
how  gentle  he  always  was,  Synnove  had  still 
more  difficulty  in  forcing  down  the  tears,  and 
this  time  no  resistance  was  of  any  avail ;  she 
began  to  weep. 

"Are  you  crying?"  asked  her  mother,  and 
looked  at  her,  without  being  able  to  see  her 
^ace. 

"  Yes ;  I  was  thinking  of  father,  and  then ' 
—  and  she  burst  out  crying,  in  good  earnest. 

"  But,  my  dear  child,  what  is  the  matter  ?  " 

"  Oh,  I  do  not  really  know  I     It  came  ovei 


synnOve  solbakken.  141 

me  —  perhaps  some  harm  will  come  to  him  on 
this  journey,"  sobbed  Synnove. 

"  How  you  do  talk  !  "  said  the  mother.  "All 
should  not  go  well  with  him  ?  Going  to  town 
on  a  smooth  country  road  ?  " 

"  Yes,  but  remember  —  what  happened  —  to 
the  other,"  faltered  Synnove. 

"  To  him?  Yes  !  But  your  father  does  not 
go  dashing  ahead  like  a  fool-hardy  simpleton, 
I  should  think.  He  will  come  home  again  un- 
harmed, —  provided  the  Lord  will  watch  over 
and  guide  him." 

The  mother  began  to  get  an  idea  from  the 
weeping,  which  now  it  seemed  impossible  to 
stop.  Presently,  without  moving  from  her 
place,  she  said,  "There  are  many  things  in 
the  world  which  are  hard  to  bear,  but  we  must 
take  consolation  in  knowing  that  they  might 
be  far  worse." 

"  Aye,  but  that  is  poor  consolation,"  said 
Synnove,  and  wept  sorely. 

The  mother  did  not  really  have  the  heart 
to  answer  what  she  thought ;  she  merely  said, 
"  The  Lord  himself  ordains  many  things  for 
us  in  a  plainly  visible  way  •  He  has  doubtless 
done  so  in  this  case  also."  And  then  she  arose, 
for  the  cows  were  beginning  to  come  lowing 
up  the  ridge,  the  bells  tinkled,  the  herd-boys 


142  SYNN5VE   SOLBAKKEN. 

shouted,  and  they  came  down  slowly,  for  the 
cows  were  well  filled  and  quiet.  She  stood 
and  looked  on  ;  then  bade  Synnove  come  with 
her  and  see  to  the  cows.  Synnove  now  arose, 
too,  and  followed  her,  but  they  went  slowly. 

Karen  Solbakken  busied  herself  with  wel- 
coming the  cattle.  The  cows  came  up  one  by 
one,  and  they  knew  her  and  lowed  ;  she  patted 
them,  talked  to  them,  and  felt  happy  when  she 
saw  how  they  had  all  improved. 

"  Ah,  yes,"  said  she,  "  the  Lord  is  near  to 
those  who  keep  themselves  near  to  Him." 

She  now  helped  Synnove  to  put  them  in  ; 
for  Synnove  made  slow  progress  to-day.  The 
mother  did  not  comment  on  this.  She  helped 
her  also  to  milk,  although  by  so  doing  she  re- 
mained up  there  longer  than  she  had  intended. 
When  they  had  finished  straining  the  milk,  the 
mother  began  to  prepare  to  go  home,  and  Syn- 
nove wanted  to  go  with  her  part  of  the  way. 

"  Oh,  no,"  said  her  mother,  "  you  are  doubt- 
'ess  tired,  and  would  like  to  be  left  in  peace." 
And  she  took  the  empty  box,  held  out  her 
hand,  and  said,  looking  fixedly  at  her,  "  I  will 
come  up  again  soon  to  see  how  things  are  go- 
ing with  you.  Cling  to  us,  and  do  not  think 
of  others." 

Scarcely  was  the  mother  out  of  sight  before 


SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN.  143 

she  began  to  consider  how  she  could  most 
quickly  get  a  message  down  to  Granlid.  She 
called  Thorbjorn's  brother.  She  wanted  to  send 
him  down,  but  when  he  came  she  found  that 
it  would  be  embarrassing  to  confide  in  him,  and 
BO  she  said,  "  It  was  nothing."  She  then 
thought  about  gf'ing  herself.  Certainty  she 
must  have,  and  it  was  a  pity  Ingrid  had  sent 
her  no  word.  The  night  was  quite  light,  and 
the  gard  was  not  so  far  off  but  that  she  could 
easily  walk  that  distance,  when  such  a  matter 
as  this  drew  her  down  there.  While  she  sat 
thinking  of  this,  she  summed  up  in  her  thoughts 
all  that  her  mother  had  said,  and  began  to 
weep  afresh.  But  this  time  she  was  not  slow; 
she  threw  a  kerchief  about  her,  and  took  a 
roundabout  way,  so  that  she  might  escape  the 
notice  of  the  boys. 

The  farther  she  advanced,  the  more  she  has- 
tened, and  at  last  she  sprang  down  the  foot- 
path, so  that  the  small  stones  were  loosened, 
rolled  down,  and  frightened  her.  Although 
she  knew  it  was  only  the  stones  rolling,  she 
thought  there  must  be  some  one  near  by,  and 
she  was  compelled  to  stand  still  and  listen.  It 
was  nothing,  and  she  hurried  on  faster  than  be- 
fore. Then  it  chanced  that  she  came  down  with 
A  bound  on  a  large  stone,  whose  one  end  pro- 


144  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

traded  into  the  road,  but  which  now  gave  way, 
dashed  on  and  past  her.  It  made  a  terrible 
racket,  the  bushes  crackled,  and  she  was  afraid, 
but  grew  still  more  so  when  she  really  fancied 
that  there  was  some  one  who  rose  and  moved 
farther  on  down  the  road.  First  she  thought 
that  it  might  be  a  wild  beast.  She  paused, 
and  held  her  breath  ;  down  below  on  the  road, 
what  she  had  seen  also  paused. 

"  Hoy  !  "  cried  a  voice.     It  was  her  mother. 

The  first  thing  Synnove  did  was  to  hasten 
away  and  hide.  She  kept  stiU  a  good  while,  in 
order  to  find  out  whether  her  mother  had  rec- 
ognized her,  and  was  coming  back ;  but  she 
went  on.  Then  she  waited  still  longer,  in 
order  that  her  mother  might  get  well  out  of 
the  way.  When  she  started  on  again,  she 
walked  slowly,  and  was  soon  approaching  the 
houses. 

When  she  saw  these,  she  began  to  grow  op- 
pressed again,  and  she  grew  more  faint  the 
nearer  she  came  to  Thorbjorn's  home.  All 
was  still  there.  The  implements  of  labor 
stood  leaning  up  against  the  wall ;  the  wood 
was  chopped  and  piled  up,  and  the  axe  stuck 
fast  in  the  block.  She  walked  past  these, 
and  on  to  the  door  ;  there  she  paused,  looked 
around,  and  listened ;  but  nothing  stirred.     As 


SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN.  145 

she  stood  there,  uncertain  whether  she  should 
go  up-stairs  to  Ingrid  or  not,  it  came  into  her 
mind  that  it  must  have  been  on  such  a  night, 
some  years  ago,  that  Thorbjorn  had  been  over 
and  planted  her  flowers.  Swiftly  she  pulled 
off  her  shoes,  and  stole  up  the  stairs. 

Ingrid  was  much  frightened  when  she  woke 
up,  and  saw  that  it  was  Synnove  who  had 
awakened  her.  "  How  is  he  getting  on  ?  " 
whispered  Synnove.  Now  Ingrid  recalled  every- 
thing, and  she  wanted  to  begin  to  dress,  in  or- 
der to  avoid  answering  Synnove  immediately. 
But  Synnove  seated  herself  on  the  edge  of  the 
bed,  begged  her  to  lie  still,  and  repeated  her 
question. 

"  He  is  better  now,"  said  Ingrid,  in  a  whis- 
per.    ''  I  am  soon  coming  up  to  the  sseter." 

"  Dear  Ingrid,  hide  nothing  from  me  ;  you 
can  tell  me  nothing  so  bad  that  I  have  not  fan- 
cied something  worse." 

Ingrid  still  tried  to  spare  her,  but  Synnove's 
alarm  increased,  and  there  was  no  opportu- 
nity for  evasive  answers.  In  a  whisper  were 
dropped  the  questions,  in  a  whisper  the  an- 
swers ;  the  deep  silence  round  about  heightened 
the  seriousness  of  both  questions  and  answers, 
80  that  it  grew  to  be  one  of  those  solemn  mo- 
ments  in  which  people  dare  to  look  the  worst 

10 


146  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

truth  directly  iii  the  face.  But  this  much  they 
both  seemed  to  decide  upon,  that  Thorbjom's 
fault  was  small  this  time,  and  that  nothing 
bad  on  his  side  intruded  itself  between  him 
and  their  sympathy  for  him.  They  both  wept 
freely,  but  quietly,  and  Synnove  wept  the  most ; 
she  sat  quite  crushed  on  the  edge  of  the  bed, 
Ingrid  tried  to  cheer  her  by  reminding  her  of 
how  much  happiness  they  three  had  had  to- 
gether ;  but,  as  is  so  often  the  case,  every  little 
remembrance  from  those  days  over  which  sun- 
shine played,  now  in  their  sorrow  melted  into 
tears. 

"  Has  he  asked  after  me  ?  "  whispered  Syn- 
nove. 

"  He  has  scarcely  spoken  at  all."  Ingrid 
now  thought  of  the  note,  and  it  began  to  weigh 
upon  her. 

"  Is  he,  then,  not  able  to  talk  ?  " 

"  I  do  not  know  how  it  is  with  him  ;  he 
probably  thinks  the  more." 

"  Does  he  read  ?  " 

"  Mother  lias  read  to  him ;  now  she  has  to 
do  so  every  day." 

"  What  does  he  say  then  ?  " 

"  Oh,  he  says  almost  nothing,  as  I  told  you 
He  only  lies  there  and  looks." 

"  It  is  in  the  painted  chamber  lie  lies  ?  " 

"  Yes." 


SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN.  147 

"  And  turns  bis  bead  toward  tbe  window  ?  " 

"  Yes." 

They  both  were  silent  for  a  moment ;  then 
Ingrid  said,  "  The  little  St.  John's  toy  you 
once  gave  him  hangs  iu  the  window,  and  keeps 
turning  round." 

"  Yes,  it  is  the  same,"  said  Synnove,  sud- 
denly and  firmly.  "  Never  in  the  world  shall 
any  one  get  me  to  give  him  up,  whichever  way 
it  may  turn  !  " 

Ingrid  felt  greatly  distressed.  "  The  doctor 
does  not  know  whether  he  will  recover  his 
health,"  she  whispered. 

Now  Synnove  stopped  crying,  raised  her 
head,  looked  at  her  without  saying  a  word, 
then  let  it  fall  again,  and  sat  still,  lost  in 
thought ;  the  last  tears  trickled  slowly  down 
her  cheeks,  but  no  new  ones  followed  them. 
She  clasped  her  bauds,  but  otherwise  did  not 
stir ;  it  was  as  though  she  sat  there  forming  a 
great  resolve.  She  then  suddenly  arose,  with 
a  smile,  stooped  down  over  Ingrid,  and  gave 
her  a  warm,  long  kiss.  "  If  he  becomes  an 
invalid,  then  I  will  take  care  of  liun.  Now 
I  will  speak  with  my  parents."  This  touched 
Ingrid  deeply  ;  but  before  she  could  find  words 
she  felt  her  hand  grasped.  "  Farewell,  Ingrid ! 
Now  I  will  go  up  alone."  And  she  turned 
away,  hastily. 


148  synnOve  solbakken. 

"'There  was  that  note,"  whispered  Ingrid 
after  her. 

"  That  note  ?  "  questioned  Syunove. 

Ingrid  was  already  up,  had  found  it,  and  went 
over  to  her  with  it ;  but  as  with  her  left  hand 
she  thrust  it  into  Synnove's  bosom,  she  put  her 
right  about  her  neck  and  kissed  her,  while  Syn- 
nove  felt  her  great,  warm  tears  fall  on  her  face. 
Then  Ingrid  softly  pushed  her  out  of  the  door, 
and  closed  it ;  for  she  had  not  the  courage  to 
see  any  more. 

Synnove  went  slowly  down  the  stairs,  in  her 
stocking  feet ;  but  when  her  thoughts  became 
too  much  for  her,  she  inadvertently  made  a 
noise,  grew  alarmed,  hurried  out  of  the  pass- 
age, seized  her  shoes,  and,  with  them  in  her 
hand,  hastened  away  past  the  houses,  across 
the  fields,  and  over  to  the  gate.  Here  she 
paused,  put  them  on,  began  to  go  up  the  path, 
and  made  haste,  for  her  blood  coursed  rapidly 
through  her  veins.  She  walked  on,  singing 
softly  to  herself,  and  hurried  more  and  more, 
90  that  at  last  she  grew  weary,  and  had  to  sit 
down.    Then  she  remembered  the  note. 

When  the  shepherd  dogs  began  to  make  a 
noise  the  next  morning,  the  herd-boys  had 
awakened,  and  the  cows  were  to  be  milked  and 
Bet  free,  Synnove  had  not  yet  returned. 


SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKKN.  149 

As  the  boys  stood  wondering  where  she  could 
be,  and  discovered  that  she  had  not  been  in  bed 
the  whole  night,  Syiinove  appeared.  She  was 
very  pale  and  quiet.  Without  a  word,  she  be- 
gan getting  breakfast  for  the  herd-boys,  put  up 
their  lunches,  and  afterwards  helped  to  milk. 

The  fog  still  hung  heavily  over  the  low 
ridges  ;  the  heather  glittered  with  dew  all  over 
the  sorrel-tinted  heights.  It  was  rather  chilly, 
and  when  the  dog  barked  he  was  answered  on 
every  side.  The  cattle  were  set  free ;  lowing 
they  greeted  the  fresh  morning  air,  and  the 
cows,  one  by  one,  started  off  over  the  foot-path ; 
but  there  in  front  of  them  sat  the  dog,  ready  to 
receive  them  and  hinder  them  from  passing  un- 
til every  one  had  been  let  loose,  whereupon  he 
also  let  them  go.  The  bells  vibrated  along  the 
ridge;  the  dog  barked,  making  the  welkin  ring; 
the  herd-boys  tried  which  of  them  could  shout 
the  loudest.  From  all  this  noise  Sjmnove  moved 
away  down  to  that  part  of  the  seeter  where  In- 
grid  and  she  were  in  the  habit  of  sitting.  She 
iid  not  weep,  sat  there  quietly  with  her  eyes 
lixed  before  her,  and  gave  heed  now  and  then 
to  the  tumultuous  noise  which  was  gradually  be- 
coming more  distant,  and  which  blended  the 
better  the  farther  away  it  got.  Meanwhile, 
she  began  to  hum   softly  to   herself,    then    to 


150  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

Bing  louder,  and  at  last  with  a  clear,  high 
voice,  the  following  song.  She  had  adapted  it 
from  another  one  she  had  known  from  the 
time  she  was  a  child :  — 

"Now  thanks  for  all  since  we  two  were  small, 
lu  groves  we  played,  at  each  merry-making; 
I  thought  our  sports  would  float  onward  all 
'Till  Time's  gray  twilight  was  breaking. 

"I  thought  our  sports  from  the  birch  would  rise, 

Leaf-crowned  and  glad,  and  would  upward  wander 
To  where  bright  Solbakken  meets  the  eyes, 
The  old  red  church  seeking  yonder. 

"  Of  evenings  oft  I  did  sit  and  wait, 

The  spruce-grown  forest  there  watching  ever ; 
The  mountains  darkened,  the  hour  grew  late. 
But  thou,  ah  thou,  earnest  never ! 

"  I  sat  and  waited,  and  oft  I  thought: 

When  day  declines  he  will  venture  over; 
But  fading  light  flick'ring  flashes  brought. 
The  days  they  came  and  passed  over. 

"The  weary  eye  is  accustomed  now 

To  seek  one  way,  't  would  be  slow  at  changing; 
It  bums  and  aches  here  beneath  the  brow, 
Yet  still  one  way  it  is  ranging. 

"  At  Fagerlid,  in  the  church,  they  say, 
I  '11  comfort  find,  as  is  surely  fitting; 
But  ask  me  not  to  go  there,  I  pray, 
For  he,  by  my  side,  there  is  sitting. 

"And  yet  so  well  who  it  was,  I  know. 

Who  placed  our  homes  there  bo  near  togetnor. 
Ajid  cut  a  way  for  the  eye  to  go 
Through  woods,  o'er  flowerv  heatker. 


SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKRN.  151 

'  And  vet  so  well  who  it  was,  I  know, 

Who  placed  the  seats  at  the  Lord's  own  table, 
And  caused  that  people  in  pairs  to  go 
Toward  the  chancel  are  able."  ^ 

1  Auber  Forestier's  translatioa 


CHAPTER  VII. 

Some  time  after  this,  Guttorm  Solbakken 
and  Karen  sat  together  over  in  the  great,  light 
sitting-room  at  Solbakken,  and  read  aloud  to 
each  other  from  some  new  books  they  had  pro- 
cured from  the  neighboring  town.  They  had 
been  at  church  in  the  forenoon,  for  it  was  Sun- 
day; then  they  had  taken  a  little  walk  to- 
gether through  the  grounds  to  examine  the 
condition  of  the  fields,  and  to  consider  which 
land  should  be  allowed  to  lie  fallow  and  which 
should  be  plowed  up  for  the  next  year.  The;y 
had  sauntered  from  one  pasture  and  field  to  an- 
other, and  it  seemed  to  them  that  the  gard  had 
improved  greatly  in  their  time.  "  God  knows 
how  it  will  prosper  when  we  are  gone  !  "  Karen 
had  remarked.  Then  it  was  that  Guttorm  had 
begged  her  to  come  in  with  him  that  they 
might  read  in  the  new  books  ;  "  for  one  does 
best  to  avoid  such  thoughts." 

But  now  the  books  had  been  examined,  and 
Karen  was  of  opinion  that  the  old  ones  were 
l^etter.  "People  only  write  over  again  what 
is  in  the  old  books,"  said  she. 


SYNNdVE   SOLBAKKEN.  153 

"  There  may  be  something  in  that.  Sosmnnd 
said  to  me  to-day  in  church  that  children  were 
only  their  parents  over  again." 

"  Yes,  you  and  Sa^mund  evidently  talked  of 
many  things  to-day." 

"  Saemund  is  a  sensible  man." 

"  But  he  seeks  his  Lord  and  Saviour  too  lit- 
tle, I  am  afraid." 

To  this  Guttorm  made  no  reply. 

"  What  became  of  Synnove  ?  "  asked  the 
mother. 

"  She  is  up-stairs,"  answered  Guttorm. 

"  You  were  sitting  there  with  her  yourself, 
a  while  ago ;  what  frame  of  mind  was  she  in  ?" 

"  Oh  "  — 

"  You  should  not  have  allowed  her  to  stay 
there  alone." 

"  Some  one  came  in." 

The  wife  was  silent  for  a  while.  "  Pray, 
who  was  it  ?  " 

"  lugrid  Granliden." 

"  I  thought  she  was  still  at  the  saeter." 

"  She  was  at  home  to-day  in  order  that  her 
mother  might  be  able  to  go  to  church." 

"  Yes,  to  be  sure,  we  saw  her  there  for  once." 

"  She  has  a  great  deal  to  do." 

^  Others  have  the  same ;  nevertheless,  one 
generallv  manages  to  go  where  one  longs  to 
her 


154  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

Guttorm  made  no  reply  to  this. 

After  a  while  Karen  said,  "  All  the  Granlid 
family  were  there  to-day  except  Ingrid." 

"  Yes,  it  was  probably  to  accompany  Thor- 
bjorn  the  first  time." 

"  He  looked  poorly." 

"  No  better  could  be  expected.  I  only  won- 
der he  appeared  so  well." 

*'  Yes,  he  has  had  to  suffer  for  his  folly." 

Guttorm  looked  down  a  little,  as  he  replied, 
"  He  is  only  in  his  youth  yet." 

"  There  is  no  good  foundation  there ;  one 
can  never  feel  sure  of  him." 

Guttorm,  who  sat  with  his  elbows  on  the  ta- 
ble, twirling  a  book  round  with  one  hand,  now 
opened  it,  and  just  as  though  he  were  reading 
softly  dropped  the  sentence,  "  He  is  said  to  be 
E[uite  sure  of  fully  regaining  his  health." 

The  mother  now  took  up  a  book  also.  "  That 
is,  indeed,  a  good  thing  for  such  a  fine-looking 
lad,"  said  she.  "  May  the  Lord  teach  him  to 
use  it  better  !  " 

They  both  read ;  but  presently  Guttorm  said, 
as  he  turned  over  a  leaf,  "  He  did  not  look 
toward  her  once  during  the  whole  day." 

"Yes,  and  I  noticed,  too,  that  he  kept  his  seat 
m  the  pew  until  she  had  gone  out." 

After  a  while,  Guttorm  asked,  "  You  think 
lie  will  forget  her  ?  " 


SYNNOVE   SOl.BAKKEN.  155 

"  That  would  at  all  events  be  best." 

Guttorm  read  on  ;  the  wife  turned  over  the 
leaves.  "  I  do  not  care  much  to  have  Ingrid 
stay  here,"  said  she. 

"  Synnove  has  scarcely  any  one  else  to  talk 
with." 

"  She  has  us." 

Now  the  father  glanced  over  at  her.  "  We 
mast  not  be  too  strict." 

The  wife  was  silent.  Soon  she  said,  "  Nor 
have  I  ever  forbidden  her  to  visit  with  Ingrid." 

The  father  closed  his  book,  arose,  and  looked 
out  of  the  window.  "  There  goes  Ingrid,"  said 
he. 

Scarcely  had  the  mother  heard  this  than  she 
hastily  left  the  room.  The  father  remained 
for  some  time  at  the  window ;  then  turned  and 
walked  up  and  down.  The  wife  came  in  again, 
and  he  paused. 

"Yes, it  was  as  I  thought,"  said  she.  "  Syn- 
nove is  sitting  up  there  crying,  but  rummages 
about  in  her  trunk  when  I  come  in."  And  then 
she  added,  sluiking  her  head,  "  No,  it  is  not 
well  to  have  Ingiid  coming  here  ;  "  and  she  be- 
took herself  to  preparing  the  evening  meal, 
passing  often  in  and  out. 

Once  while  she  was  out  Synnove  came  in, 
rather  flushed  from  weeping   and    quiet ;    she 


156  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

walked  close  by  her  father,  into  whose  face  she 
looked  up  as  she  passed,  and  over  to  the  table, 
where  she  sat  down  and  took  a  book.  Presently, 
Bhe  closed  this,  and  asked  her  mother  if  she 
should  help  her. 

"  Yes,  do  so  !  "  said  the  latter.  "  Work  is 
good  for  all  things.'' 

It  became  her  task  to  set  the  table  ;  it  stood 
over  by  the  window.  The  father,  who  thus  far 
had  been  walking  to  and  fro,  went  over  there 
now  and  looked  out.  "I  believe  that  barley 
field  the  rain  beat  down  is  straightening  up 
again,"  said  he.  Synnove  took  her  stand  by  his 
side,  and  looked  out,  too.  He  turned ;  his  wife 
was  in,  and  so  he  merely  stroked  the  back  of 
Synnove's  head  with  one  hand,  after  which  he 
began  pacmg  the  floor  again. 

They  ate  their  suppei-,  but  very  quietly.  The 
mother  said  grace  that  day  both  before  and  after 
the  meal,  and  when  they  had  arisen  she  iesired 
them  to  read  and  sing,  which  they  did,  too. 
"  The  word  of  God  gives  peace ;  it  is  after  all 
the  greatest  blessing  in  a  house."  With  this 
the  mother  looked  over  at  Synnove,  who  had 
cast  down  her  eyes.  "  Now  I  am  going  to  tell 
you  a  story,"  said  the  mother ;  "  it  is  true, 
every  word,  and  not  bad  for  those  who  will  re- 
flect upon  it." 


synnOve  solbakken.  157 

And  then  she  began  as  follows  :  "  There  was, 
in  ray  younger  days,  a  young  girl  at  Houg,  who 
was  the  granddaughter  of  a  learned  old  lens- 
mand.  He  early  took  her  under  his  own  care, 
that  he  might  have  py  in  her  in  his  old  days, 
and  of  course  taught  her  the  word  of  God  and 
good  behavior.  She  was  quick  at  learning  and 
delighted  in  knowledge,  so  that  in  the  course 
of  time  she  was  far  in  advance,  while  we  stood 
behind  ;  she  wrote  and  ciphered,  Icnew  all  her 
school-books  and  twenty-five  chapters  in  the  Bi- 
ble, when  she  was  fifteen  years  old.  I  remem- 
ber it  as  though  it  were  yesterday.  She  cared 
more  for  reading  than  for  dancing,  so  that  she 
rarely  was  to  be  found  at  the  merry-makings, 
but  oftener  in  her  grandfather's  loft-chamber, 
where  he  kept  his  many  books.  It  so  hap- 
pened that  whenever  we  did  meet  her  she 
always  seemed  to  be  somewhere  else,  and  we 
said  to  one  another,  '  Were  we  only  as  wise  as 
Karen  Hougen  !  '  She  was  to  inherit  the  old 
man's  property,  and  many  a  good  fellow  offered 
himself  to  share  it  with  her ;  but  they  all  got 
refusals.  About  this  time  the  priest's  son  came 
home  from  the  priest-school.  Things  had  not 
gone  well  with  him,  because  he  had  more  taste 
for  carousing  and  mischief  than  for  proper 
tilings  :  now  he  drank.    '  Beware  of  him ! '  said 


158  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

the  old  leiismand.  '  I  have  been  much  with  peo- 
ple of  the  upper  classes,  and  it  is  my  experience 
that  they  are  less  worthy  of  our  confidence  than 
peasants.'  Karen  constantly  heeded  his  voice 
beyond  that  of  others.  And  when,  by  and  by, 
she  began  to  come  into  contact  with  the  priest's 
son  she  avoided  him,  for  he  sought  her.  Soon 
she  could  go  nowhere  without  meeting  him. 
'  Awaj  ! '  cried  she  ;  '  it  will  do  you  no  good.' 
But  he  persisted,  and  thus  it  happened  that  at 
last  she  was  forced  to  pause  and  listen.  He 
was  handsome  enough,  but  when  he  told  her 
that  he  could  not  live  without  her  he  frightened 
her.  He  was  always  hanging  about  the  house, 
but  she  did  not  come  out ;  he  stood  outside  of 
her  window  at  night,  but  she  did  not  appear ; 
he  said  he  would  put  an  end  to  himself,  but 
Karen  knew  what  she  knew.  And  then  he 
would  take  to  drinkinc:  again.  '  Beware  of  him  ! 
These  are  all  the  devil's  snares,'  said  the  old 
lensmand.  One  day  the  fellow  appeared  in  her 
room;  no  one  knew  how  he  had  come  there. 
Now  I  am  going  to  kill  you,'  said  he.  '  Yes, 
io  so  if  you  dare,'  said  she.  But  then  he  shed 
tears,  and  told  her  that  it  was  in  her  power  to 
uake  a  respectable  man  of  him.  '  If  you  could 
abstain  from  drinking  even  half  a  year,'  said 
she.     And  so  he  kept   from   drinking   half  a 


synnOve  solbakken.  159 

year.  '  Do  you  trust  me  now?  '  asked  he.  '  Not 
until  you  have  given  up  all  kinds  of  gayety  and 
merry-making  for  half  a  year.'  This  he  did. 
'  Do  you  trust  me  now? '  asked  he.  '  Not  until 
you  go  away  and  finish  your  studies  for  the 
priesthood.'  He  did  this,  too,  and  the  next 
year  came  back  with  his  studies  completed. 
'  Do  you  trust  me  now  ?  '  asked  he,  and  even 
had  on  gown  and  collar.  '  Now  I  should  like 
to  hear  you  preach  a  few  times,'  said  Karen. 
And  he  preached  strictly  in  accordance  with 
the  word  of  God,  as  it  behooves  a  priest  to  do ; 
he  spoke  of  his  own  weakness,  and  how  easy  it 
was  to  conquer  if  one  could  only  begin,  and 
how  good  the  word  of  God  was  when  once  it 
was  found.  After  this  he  again  sought  Karen. 
'  Yes,  now  I  believe  you  live  up  to  what  you 
have  learned,'  said  Karen.  '  And  now  I  will 
tell  you  that  for  three  years  I  have  been  be- 
trothed to  my  cousin,  Anders  Hougen ;  you 
shall  publish  the  bans  for  us  next  Sunday.'  " 

Here  the  mother  concluded.  Synnove  had 
paid  little  attention  in  the  beginning,  but  had 
gradually  roused  up  more  nnd  more,  and  at  the 
last  hung  upon  every  word.  "  Is  there  any 
more?"  inquired  she,  much  alarmed. 

"  No,"  answered  the  mother.  The  father 
.ooked  at  the  mother,  and  then  her  gaze  grew 


160  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

unsteady  and  avoided  his  ;  and  after  a  little  re- 
flection, during  wliicli  she  drew  her  finger  along 
the  table,  she  continned,  "  Perhaps  there  might 
be  something  more  ;  but  it  does  not  matter." 

*'  Is  there  more  ?  "  asked  Synnove,  turning 
to  her  father,  who  seemed  to  know  about  it. 

"  Oh  —  yes  ;  but  it  is  as  mother  says ;  it  does 
not  matter." 

"  What  became  of  him  ?  "  asked  Synnove. 

"Ay,  that  is  just  it,"  said  the  father,  and 
looked  toward  the  mother.  She  had  leaned 
back  against  the  wall,  and  was  looking  at  the 
two. 

"  Did  he  become  unhappy?  "  asked  Synniwe, 
softly. 

"  We  must  end  where  the  end  ought  to  be," 
gaid  the  mother,  and  arose.  The  father  did 
likewise.     Svnnove  slowlv  arose  after  them. 


CHAPTER  Vm. 

Some  weeks  later,  early  in  the  morning,  the 
entire  Solbakke  household  was  preparing    for 
church-going.     There  was  to  be  confirmation, 
which  took  place  a  little  earlier  this  year  than 
usual,  and   on   an   occasion   of   this  kind  the 
house  Avas  always  locked  up,  for  all  wanted  to 
go.     They  were   not  going  to   drive,   as   the 
weather  was    clear,  although  rather  cold  and 
blustering  in  the  morning ;  the  day  promised 
to  be  fine.     The  road  wound  about  the  parish  ; 
and  past  Granliden,  then  took  an  abrupt  turn 
to  the  right,  and  fully  two  miles  farther  on  lay 
the  church.     The  grain  was  in  most  places  cut 
and  put  on  poles  for  drying.     The  cows  had 
nearly  all  been  brought  down  from  the  mount- 
ains, and  were  tethered.    The  fields  were  either 
covered  with  their  second  growth  of  green,  or 
where  the  earth  was  poor  were  of  a  grayish- 
white  hue.     Round  about  stood  the  many-col- 
ored forests :   the  birch  already  drooping,  the 
aspen  quite  yellow,  the  rowan  with  dry,  shriv- 
eled leaves,  but  vnth  berries.     It  had   rained 
11 


162  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

hard  for  several  days ;  the  small  brush  that 
lined  the  roadside,  and  stood  sneezing  in  the 
Band,  was  now  washed  clean  and  fresh.  But 
the  mountain  sides  began  to  beetle  more  darkly 
over  the  valley,  now  that  the  devastating  au- 
tumn had  dismantled  them  and  made  them 
look  sober;  whereas  the  mountain  brooks, 
which  had  only  occasionally  shown  life  during 
the  summer,  rolled  swollen  and  leaped  down 
with  a  great  noise.  The  Granlid  force  fell 
more  heavily  and  with  more  gravity,  especially 
when  it  came  to  the  rock}'^  waste  of  the  Granlid 
slope,  where  the  mountain  suddenly  refuses  to 
accompany  it  any  farther,  and  makes  an  ab- 
rupt curve  inward.  It  braced  itself  in  the  rock, 
and  then  rushed  onward,  and  shouted  so  that 
the  mountain  trembled.  The  rock  was  well 
washed  for  its  treason,  for  the  force  sent  a  pro- 
voking jet  of  spray  right  up  into  its  face. 
Some  inquisitive  alder  bushes,  which  had  ap- 
proached the  edge  of  the  precipice,  had  nearly 
reeled  down  in  the  flood ;  they  stood  gasping 
in  the  shower-bath,  for  the  force  was  not  spar- 
ing to-day. 

Thorbjorn,  both  his  parents,  his  brother  and 
sister,  and  the  rest  of  the  household  passed  by 
and  beheld  this.  He  was  now  weU  again,  and 
had  already  taken  vigorous  hold  of  his  father's 


synnOve  solbakken.  163 

work,  as  before.  The  two  were  continually  to- 
gether, and  so  they  were  to-day. 

"  I  almost  think  those  are  the  Solbakke  peo- 
ple we  have  right  behind  us,"  said  the  father. 

Thorbjoru  did  not  look  back,  but  the  mother 
said,  "  Yes,  so  they  are  ;  but  I  do  not  see  — oh, 
yes,  far  back  there." 

Either  because  the  Granlid  family  went 
faster  after  this,  or  because  the  Solbakke  fam- 
ily slackened  their  speed,  the  distance  between 
them  became  greater  and  greater  ;  at  last  they 
could  scarcely  see  one  another. 

It  looked  as  if  the  church  would  be  crowded ; 
the  long  parish  road  was  black  with  people, 
walking,  driving,  and  riding.  The  horses,  now 
in  the  autumn,  were  full  of  mettle  and  little 
accustomed  to  being  together ;  the  result  of 
which  was  that  they  went  neighing  along,  and 
were  so  luiruly  that  the  trip  was  dangerous,  al- 
though quite  lively.  The  nearer  they  drew  to 
the  church,  the  greater  noise  the  horses  kept 
up;  for  each  one  that  arrived  called  out  to 
those  who  already  stood  tied  there,  and  they 
in  turn  tugged  at  their  tethers,  stamped  on  the 
ground  with  their  hind  hoofs,  and  whinnied  at 
the  new-comers.  All  the  dogs  of  the  parish, 
who  the  whole  week  long  had  sat  listening  to 
one  another,  scolding  and  teasing  one  another. 


164  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

now  met  here  at  church,  and  rushed  into  the 
most  desperate  fights,  in  couples  and  in  great 
knots,  all  over  the  grounds.  The  people  stood 
quiet  in  rows  along  the  church  wall  and  along 
the  houses,  spoke  in  whispers,  and  merely 
'ooked  i>.t  one  another  out  of  the  corners  of 
their  eyes.  The  road  leading  past  the  wall  was 
not  broad ;  the  houses  on  the  opposite  side 
were  close  by ;  and  the  women  generally  stood 
along  the  church  wall,  the  men  directly  oppo- 
site, along  the  houses.  Not  until  later  did  they 
venture  to  cross  over  and  mingle  together ;  and 
even  if  acquaintances  espied  one  another  at  a 
distance  they  acted  as  though  they  did  not 
know  one  another  until  that  time  came.  It 
might  then  happen  that  when  a  fresh  party 
came  up  some  of  those  already  there  stood  so 
directly  in  their  way  that  a  greeting  could  not 
be  avoided ;  but  it  was  given,  in  such  cases, 
with  half-averted  face  and  few  words,  where- 
upon the  new-comers  were  apt  to  withdraw 
each  to  his  side.  When  the  Granlid  family 
approached,  the  prevailing  stillness,  if  possi- 
ble, increased.  S^mund  did  not  have  many 
to  greet,  and  so  he  quickly  passed  down  the 
line ;  the  women,  on  their  part,  at  once  fast- 
ened themselves  against  the  wall,  and  remained 
standing  there  among  the  foremost.     The  r& 


synnOve  solbakken.  165 

Bult  of  this  was  that  when  it  was  time  to  go 
into  church  the  men  had  to  cross  over  again 
after  the  women.  Just  as  they  were  doing  so, 
three  vehicles,  one  after  the  other,  came  driv- 
ing up  more  rapidly  than  any  of  the  preced- 
ing ones,  and  did  not  slacken  their  speed  as 
they  turned  in  among  the  people.  Sasmund 
and  Thorbjorn,  who  came  near  being  run  over, 
both  looked  up  at  once  ;  in  the  first  vehicle  sat 
Knud  Nordhoug  and  an  old  man,  in  the  sec- 
ond his  sister  and  her  husband,  and  in  the  third 
his  parents.  Father  and  son  looked  at  each 
other  ;  not  a  feature  of  Saimund's  face  moved. 
Thorbjorn  was  very  pale.  They  both  gazed 
away  and  looked  directly  before  them ;  then 
they  saw  the  Solbakke  family,  who  had  just 
paused  directly  opposite  to  greet  Inge bj  org  and 
Ingrid  Granliden.  The  vehicles  had  come  in 
between ;  conversation  had  grown  stiff ;  their 
eyes  still  hung  on  those  who  had  driven  on, 
and  it  was  some  time  before  they  could  with- 
draw them.  After  one  and  the  other  had  be- 
gun to  recover  from  the  surprise,  and  let  their 
eyes  wander  around  to  seek  something  to  di- 
vert their  attention,  they  fell  on  Ssemund  and 
Thorbjorn,  who  stood  staring  there  in  the  road. 
Guttorm  Solbakken  turned  away,  but  his  wife 
at  once   sought   Thorbjorn's   eyes.      Synuove, 


166  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

who  had  probably  caught  these,  turned  to  In- 
grid  Granliden,  and  took  her  hand  to  greet  her, 
although  she  liad  done  so  once  before.  But 
they  all  at  the  same  time  became  conscious  that 
their  servants  and  acquaintances  were  every  one 
observing  them,  and  SaBnmnd  went  right  over 
and,  without  looking  at  him,  took  Guttorm  by 
the  hand. 

"  Thanks  for  last,"  ^  said  he. 

"  Thanks  to  yourself  for  last." 

To  Guttorm's  wife  too  he  said,  "  Thanks  for 
last." 

"Thanks  to  yourself  for  last;"  but  she  did 
not  look  up  as  she  spoke. 

Thorbjorn  followed,  and  did  as  his  father  had 
done.  The  latter  had  now  come  to  Synnove,  who 
was  the  first  person  he  looked  at.  She  looked 
up  at  him,  too,  and  forgot  to  say,  "  Thanks  for 
last."  Thorbjorn  appeared  just  then;  he  said 
nothing,  she  nothing.  They  took  each  other  by 
the  hand,  but  lightly ;  neither  could  raise  an 
eye,  neither  could  stir  a  foot. 

"  It  is  surely  going  to  be  blessed  weather,  to- 
day," remarked  Karen  Solbakken,  and  glanced 
hastily  from  one  to  the  other. 

It  was  Saemund  who  answered :  "  Oh,  yes ; 
that  wind  is  driving  the  clouds  away." 

1  A  common  greeting  in  Norway,  equivalent  to  "  Thanks  for  tht 
Uflt  time  we  were  together." 


synnOve  solbakken.  167 

•'  That  is  a  good  thing  for  the  grain  that  is 
standing  out  and  needs  dry  weather,"  said  In- 
gebjorg  Granliden,  and  began  to  brush  the 
back  of  Saemund's  jacket,  probably  because  she 
thought  it  was  dusty. 

"  The  Lord  has  given  us  a  good  year  ;  but  it 
is  rather  uncertain  whether  we  shall  get  every- 
thing under  cover,"  began  Karen  Solbakken, 
and  glanced  over  again  at  the  two,  who  had 
not  stirred  since  the  last  time  she  looked. 

"  That  depends  upon  how  strong  a  force  we 
can  muster,"  replied  Ssemund,  and  turned  in 
such  a  way  toward  her  that  she  could  not  very 
well  look  where  she  wanted,  "  I  have  often 
thought  that  a  couple  of  gards  might  unite 
their  forces;  we  would  surely  do  better  in  that 
way." 

"  It  might  happen  that  they  would  want  to 
make  use  of  the  dry  weather  at  the  same  time," 
said  Karen  Solbakken,  and  took  a  step  to  one 
side. 

*'  Yes,  to  be  sure,"  answered  Ingebjorg,  and 
stationed  herself  close  beside  her  husband,  so 
that  Karen  could  not  look  where  she  desired 
now  either.  "  But  in  some  places  the  crop 
ripens  earlier  than  in  others :  Solbakken  is 
often  a  fortnight  in  advance  of  us." 

"  Yea,  and  so  we  could  very  well  help  each 


168  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

Other,"  observed  Guttorm  slowly,  and  drew  a 
step  nearer.  Karen  gave  bim  a  hasty  glance 
"  However,  there  are  many  circumstances  which 
can  come  in  the  way,"  added  he. 

"  That  there  are,"  said  Karen,  and  moved  a 
step  to  one  side,  a  step  to  the  other,  and  still 
anothe-',  but  glanced  back  again. 

"  Oh,  yes,  there  is  often  a  great  deal  in  one's 
way,"  said  Saemund;  and  a  smile  seemed  to 
play  about  his  lips. 

"  That  is  no  doubt  so,"  said  Guttorm. 

But  his  wife  interposed,  "  Man's  power  does 
not  extend  far ;  that  of  God  is  the  greatest,  I 
should  think,  and  it  depends  upon  Him." 

"  Do  you  think  He  is  likely  to  have  anything 
especial  against  our  helping  one  another  with 
the  harvesting  at  Granliden  and  Solbakken  ?  " 

"  No,"  remarked  Guttorm.  •"•  He  cannot  have 
anything  against  that,"  and  he  looked  gravely 
at  his  wife.     She  turned  the  subject. 

"  There  are  a  great  many  people  at  church 
to-day,"  said  she;  "it  does  one  good  to  see 
them  seek  the  house  of  God." 

No  one  seemed  to  want  to  reply  ;  finally  Gut 
torm  observed,  "  I  really  believe  the  fear  of 
God  is  increasing ;  there  is  a  larger  attendance 
at  church  now  than  there  was  in  my  young 
lays."' 


synnOve  solbakken.  169 

"  Oh,  yes,  —  the  people  are  increasing,"  re- 
marked Sseraund. 

"  No  doubt  there  are  some  among  them,  per- 
haps the  greater  part,  who  merely  come  over 
here  from  habit,"  said  Karen  Solbakken. 

"  Perhaps  the  younger  ones,"  observed  In- 
gebjorg. 

"  The  younger  ones  like  to  meet  one  another,' 
said  Ssemund. 

"  Have  you  heard  that  the  priest  is  going  to 
apply  for  another  parish?  "  asked  Karen,  thus 
turning  the  conversation  a  second  time. 

"  That  would  be  too  bad,"  said  Ingebjorg. 
"  He  has  both  baptized  and  confirmed  all  my 
children." 

"  I  suppose  you  would  like  him  to  marry 
them  also,  first,"  said  Ssemund,  and  chewed 
away  at  a  chip  he  had  picked  up. 

"I  wonder  if  it  will  not  soon  be  church 
time  1 "  exclaimed  Karen,  and  looked  over  at 
the  door. 

"  Yes,  it  is  pretty  warm  out  here  to-day," 
said  Scemund,  chewing  away  as  before. 

"  Come  now,  Synnove,  let  us  go  in." 

Synnove  started,  and  turned,  for  she  had 
donbtless  been  talking  with  Thorbjorn. 

''  Will  you  not  wait  until  the  bell  rings  ?  " 
asked  Ingrid  Granliden,  and  stole  a  glance  at 
Synnove. 


170  synnOve  solbakken. 

"Then  we  can  all  go  in  together,"  added 
Ingebjorg. 

Synnove  knew  not  what  she  should  answer. 

Stfimund  looked  over  his  shoulder  at  her. 
''  Wait,  and  it  will  ring  soon  for  you,"  said  he. 

Synnove  grew  very  red ;  her  mother  looked 
sharply  up  at  him.  But  he  smiled  with  his 
eyes  fixed  on  her. 

"  It  will  be  now  as  the  Lord  wishes  ;  was  not 
that  what  you  said  a  while  ago?"  said  he,  a;  d 
sauntered  on  in  advance  toward  the  church,  the 
others  following. 

At  the  church  door  there  was  a  crowd,  and 
when  they  came  to  look  it  was  not  open.  Just 
as  they  drew  nearer  to  inquire  into  the  cause  of 
this,  the  door  was  opened,  and  the  people  poured 
in ;  but  some  of  them  stepped  back,  and  this 
separated  those  who  were  entering.  Up  against 
the  wall  stood  two  people,  in  conversation,  one 
of  them  tall  and  heavily  built,  with  light  but 
straight  hair  and  snub  nose ;  and  this  was  Knud 
Nordhoug,  who,  when  he  saw  the  Granlid  family 
approach,  stopped  talking,  looked  rather  em- 
barrassed, but  stood  still,  nevertheless.  Ssemund 
was  obliged  now  to  go  right  past  him,  and  fixed 
m  him  a  pair  of  eyes,  as  he  did  so  ;  but  Knud 
did  not  lower  his  either,  although  their  gaze 
was  not  steady.     Now  came  Synnove,  and  the 


synnOve  solbakken.  171 

moment  she  so  unexpectedly  caught  sight  of 
Kuud  she  grew  deathly  pale.  Then  Knud  cast 
down  his  eyes,  and  straiglitened  himself  up 
from  the  wall  to  go.  He  had  taken  only  a  few 
steps  when  he  saw  four  faces  turned  to  his ; 
these  were  Guttorm's,  his  wife's,  Ingrid's,  and 
Thorbjorn's.  As  one  bewildered,  he  went 
straight  toward  them,  so  that  without  know- 
ing what  he  was  doing  he  soon  stood  face  to 
face  with  Thorbjorn  himself  ;  the  latter  at  once 
made  a  movement  to  turn  aside ;  but  several 
people  had  come  up,  and  this  could  not  so  eas- 
ily be  done.  This  occurred  on  the  stone  slab 
lying  outside  of  the  Fagerlid  church.  Upon 
the  threshold  of  the  vestibule  Synnove  had 
paused,  and  Ssemund  farther  in  ;  as  they  stood 
higher  than  the  others,  they  could  distinctly  see 
every  one  outside,  and  be  seen  by  them.  Syn- 
nove had  forgotten  all  else  around  her,  and  only 
stared  at  Thorbjorn  ;  the  same  with  Ssemund, 
his  wife,  the  Solbakke  couple,  and  Ingrid. 
Thorbjorn  felt  this,  and  stood  as  one  nailed  to 
the  spot ;  but  Knud  thought  he  must  do  some- 
thing here,  and  so  he  stretched  out  one  hand 

little  way,  but  said  nothing.  Thorbjorn  also 
put  his  forward  a  little,  but  not  so  that  the 
-wo  hands  could  touch. 

"Thanks  for" — began  Knud,  but  remem- 


172  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

bered   at  once  that   this  was   not   the   proper 
greeting  here,  and  drew  back  a  step. 

Thorbjorn  looked  up,  and  his  eye  fell  on 
Synnove,  who  was  as  white  as  snow.  With  a 
long  stride  forward  and  a  vigorous  grasp  of 
Knud's  hand,  he  said,  so  that  those  nearest 
could  hear  it,  "  Thanks  for  last,  Knud  ;  we  may 
have  gained  much  good  from  it,  both  of  us." 

Knud  gave  vent  to  a  sound,  almost  like  a  sob, 
and  it  seemed  two  or  three  times  as  though  he 
tried  to  speak,  but  the  effort  was  in  vain.  Thor- 
bjorn had  nothing  further  to  say,  he  waited, 
did  not  look  up,  —  only  waited.  There  was  ut- 
tered, meanwhile,  not  a  word  ;  and  as  Thorbjorn 
now  stood  there  twirling  his  hymn-book,  it 
chanced  that  he  dropped  it.  At  once  Knud 
stooped,  picked  it  up,  and  handed  it  to  him. 

"  Thank  you!  "  said  Thorbjorn,  who  had  half 
stooped  himself.  He  raised  his  eyes,  but  as 
Knud  looked  down  again,  Thorbjorn  thought, 
"  It  is  best  for  me  to  go."     And  so  he  went. 

The  others  went,  too,  and  when  Thorbjorn 
had  been  seated  for  a  while,  and  ventured  to 
look  over  at  the  women's  pew,  his  gaze  met 
Ingebj org's  face,  beaming  with  a  motherly  smile 
on  him,  and  that  of  Karen  Solbakken  too,  who 
evidently  had  been  waiting  for  him  to  look  over 
there;    for  the  moment  he  did  so  she  nodded 


synnOve  solbakken.  173 

at  him  three  times,  and  when  he  hesitated  she 
nodded  again  three  times,  still  more  gently 
than  before.  Sremund,  his  father,  whispered  in 
his  ear,  "  I  thought  so."  They  had  heard  the 
opening  prayer,  sung  a  hymn,  and  the  confirma- 
tion candidates  wei'e  already  taking  their  places 
before  he  whispered  to  him  the  next  time : 
"  But  Knud  does  not  know  much  about  being 
erood  :  let  it  ever  be  far  from  Granliden  to 
Nordhoug." 

The  confirmation  began  by  the  priest  coming 
forward  and  the  children  uniting  in  singing 
Kingn's  confirmation  hymn.  To  hear  them  sing 
all  at  once  and  without  accompaniment,  their 
fresh  young  voices  so  full  of  trusting  hope,  is 
calculated  to  touch  people,  and  especially  those 
who  are  not  too  far  advanced  in  life  to  remem- 
ber their  own  day.  When  after  this  deep  si- 
lence ensues,  and  the  priest,  the  same  now  as 
more  than  twenty  years  ago,  the  same  who  has 
taken  such  pains  to  find  an  occasional  little 
hour  wherein  he  has  talked  for  the  improve- 
ment of  every  single  one  of  them,  —  when  now 
he  clasps  his  hands  over  his  breast  and  joins  in 
the  hymn,  there  is  indeed  much  emotion.  But 
the  children  begin  to  shed  tears  when  the  priest 
talks  of  their  parents,  and  wishes  them  to  pray 
to  the  Lord  for  their  children.    Thorbjorn,  wlio 


174  SYNNdVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

but  recently  lay  at  the  point  of  death,  and  still 
more  recently  believed  that  he  would  be  an  in- 
valid all  his  life,  wept  much,  but  especially 
when  the  children  took  upon  them  their  vow, 
and  all  seemed  so  sure  of  being  able  to  keep  it. 
He  did  not  once  look  over  at  the  women's  pew, 
but  at  the  end  of  the  service  he  went  over  to 
Ingrid,  his  sister,  and  whispered  something  to 
her,  whereupon  he  hurriedly  pressed  forward 
and  went  out ;  and  some  were  under  the  im- 
pression that  he  had  gone  up  over  the  slope  and 
through  the  woods,  instead  of  by  the  road,  but 
they  were  not  sure  of  this.  Saemund  searched 
for  him  ;  gave  it  up,  though,  when  he  saw  that 
Ingrid  too  was  gone.  He  then  looked  round 
for  the  Solbakke  people;  they  were  seeking 
everywhere  for  Sjunove,  whom  no  one  had 
seen.  Then  they  started  for  home,  each  sepa- 
rately, and  without  their  children. 

But  already  far  on  their  way  were  both  Syn- 
nove  and  Ingrid. 

"  I  am  almost  sorry  that  I  came  along,"  said 
the  former. 

"  It  is  no  longer   serious    now  that   father 
knows  of  it,"  said  the  latter. 

"  Yes,  but  he  is  not  my  father,"  replied  Syn 
uove. 

"  Who  knows  ?  "  replied   Ingrid ;    and  then 
they  said  nothing  more  upon  that  subject. 


synnOve  solbakken.  175 

"  This  must  be  where  we  were  to  wait,"  re- 
marked Ingrid,  as  the  road  made  an  abrupt 
curve,  and  they  entered  a  dense  wood. 

"  He  has  taken  a  long,  roundabout  way," 
said  Synnove. 

"  Ah'eady  come  !  "  interposed  Thorbjorn  ;  he 
arose  from  behind  a  great  stone. 

He  had  ready  in  his  mind  all  that  he  wanted 
to  say,  and  that  was  not  a  little.  But  to-day 
things  could  not  go  wrong  ;  for  his  father  knew 
his  wishes  and  approved  thera,  of  which  he  felt 
sure,  after  what  had  occurred  at  church.  This 
oportunity  was  what  he  had  been  longing  for 
the  whole  summer,  and  he  surely  would  be 
more  able  to  speak  now  than  he  had  ever  been 
before.  "  We  had  better  take  the  road  through 
the  woods,"  observed  he  ;  "■  we  will  get  on  faster 
that  way."  The  girls  said  nothing,  but  went 
with  him.  Thorbjorn  thought  about  speaking 
to  Synnove,  but  first  he  wanted  to  wait  until 
they  got  up  over  the  hill,  afterward  until  they 
were  across  the  marsh  ;  yet  when  they  were 
well  across,  he  decided  that  it  was  best  not  to 
begin  until  they  had  come  into  the  woods,  far- 
ther on.  Ingrid,  who  probably  thought  they 
were  getting  on  pretty  slowly,  began  to  slacken 
her  pace,  and  fell  more  and  more  behind,  until 
^he  was  scarcely  visible.     Synnove   pretended 


176  synnOve  solbakken. 

she  did  not  notice  this,  but  began  to  pick  here 
and  there  a  berry  which  thrust  itself  forwiiixl 
on  the  roadside. 

"  It  would  be  strange  if  I  could  not  find  words 
for  myself,"  thought  Thorbjorn  ;  and  so  he  re- 
marked, "  The  weather  proved  to  be  fine  to-day, 
after  all." 

"  So  it  did,"  answered  Synnove.  And  then 
they  walked  on  a  piece  again.  She  picked  ber- 
ries, and  he  kept  moving. 

"  It  was  kind  of  you  to  come  with  me,"  said 
he  ;  but  to  this  she  made  no  answer.  "  It  has 
been  a  long  summer,"  he  continued  ,  but  to 
this  she  made  no  answer,  either. 

"No,  as  long  as  we  are  walking,"  thought 
Thorbjorn,  "  we  will  never  get  the  conversa- 
tion started.  I  think  we  had  better  wait  a  lit- 
tle for  Ingrid,"  said  he. 

"  Yes,  let  us  do  so,"  answered  Synnove,  and 
stood  still. 

There  were  no  berries  here  to  stoop  for,  — 
this  Thorbjorn  had  plainly  seen  ;  but  Synnove 
had  picked  up  a  large  straw,  and  now  she  stood 
and  threaded  the  berries  on  the  straw. 

"  To-day  I  have  been  strongly  reminded  of 
the  time  when  we  went  together  to  confirma- 
tion," said  lie. 

"I,  too,  thought  of  it,"  replied  she. 


SYNNOVE   SOLBAI^KEN.  177 

"Many  things  have  happened  since  that 
time,"  said  he  ;  and  as  she  made  no  answer,  he 
continued :  "  but  most  of  them  have  been  dif- 
ferent from  what  we  expected." 

Synnove  was  very  industriously  threading  her 
berries  on  the  straw,  and  held  her  head  bowed 
down  as  she  did  so.  He  advanced  a  little  in 
order  to  look  into  her  face  ;  but,  as  though  she 
observed  this,  she  managed  to  make  it  ueces- 
sai7  for  her  to  turn  again.  Then  he  grew  al- 
most afraid  that  he  should  not  be  able  to  say 
what  he  desired. 

"  Synnove,  you  must  have  something  to  say, 
too." 

She  looked  up  and  laughed.  "  What  shall  I 
say  ?  "  asked  she. 

He  recovered  all  his  courage,  and  wanted  to 
put  his  arm  right  around  her  waist ;  but  when 
he  came  near  her,  he  did  not  exactly  dare  to  do 
80.  He  therefore  merely  asked,  very  timidly, 
"  Ingrid  has  talked  with  you,  I  presume  ?  " 

"  Yes,"  replied  she. 

"  Then  1  dare  say  you  know  something,  too," 
said  he.  She  was  silent.  "  Then  I  dare  say 
you  know  something,  too,"  he  repeated,  and 
drew  nearer  the  second  time. 

"  You  know  something,  too,  I  suppose,"  an- 
swered she. 

IS 


178  SYNNdVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

He  could  not  see  her  face. 

"Yes,"  said  he,  and  tried  to  take  hold  of 
one  of  her  hands  ;  but  she  was  more  industrious 
now  than  ever.  "  It  is  so  provoking,"  continued 
he  ;  "  you  steal  ray  courage  away."  He  could 
not  see  whether  she  smiled  to  this,  and  there- 
fore he  did  not  know  what  he  should  add.  "  To 
cut  the  matter  short,"  said  he,  suddenly,  speak- 
ing in  a  loud  tone,  although  tlie  voice  was  not 
quite  steady,  "what  have  you  done  with  that 
note  ?  " 

She  made  no  reply,  but  turned  away.  He 
moved  after  her,  laid  one  hand  on  her  shoulder, 
and  bent  over  her. 

"  Answer  me,"  he  whispered. 

"  I  have  burnt  it." 

He  quickly  seized  hold  of  her  and  turned 
her  toward  him  ;  but  then  he  saw  that  she  was 
about  to  cry,  and  so  he  did  not  dare  to  do 
anything  but  let  go  his  hold  of  her  again.  "  It 
is  too  bad  that  her  tears  come  so  easily," 
thought  he. 

Just  at  that  moment  she  said,  "  Why  did 
you  write  the  note  ?  " 

"  That  Ingrid  has  told  you." 

"  Yes,  of  course  ;  but  —  it  was  hard  in  you.' 

"  Father  wished  that  "  — 

*'  Nevertheless  "  — 


stnnOve  solbakken.  179 

"  He  believed  that  I  would  be  a  broken- 
down  invalid  all  my  life ;  hereafter  I  shall  take 
care  of  you,"  said  he. 

Tngrid  appeared  at  the  foot  of  the  hill,  and 
they  started  at  once  to  go  on. 

"  It  seemed  as  though  I  cared  most  for  you 
when  I  no  longer  thought  I  should  be  able  to 
get  you,"  he  continued. 

"One  knows  one's  self  best  when  one  is 
alone,"  said  she. 

"  Yes ;  then  we  find  out  who  has  the  great- 
est power  over  us,"  said  Thorbjorn,  in  a  clear 
voice,  and  walked  gravely  by  her  side. 

She  picked  no  more  berries. 

"  Will  you  have  these  ?  "  asked  she,  handing 
him  the  straw. 

"  Thank  you !  "  said  he,  and  held  fast  to  the 
hand  that  reached  him  the  berries.  "  So  then 
it  is  best  that  things  go  on  in  the  old  way," 
said  he,  in  rather  a  faint  voice. 

"  Yes,"  she  whispered,  scarcely  audibly,  and 
turned  away. 

Then  they  went  onward,  and  so  long  as  she 
was  silent  he  did  not  either  dare  touch  her  or 
speak ;  but  he  felt  no  weight  at  all  in  his  body, 
and  therefore  came  pretty  near  tumbling  over. 
There  was  a  burning  in  his  eyes,  and  when, 
just  then,  they  reached  an  elevation  from  which 


180  synnOve  solbakken. 

Solbakken  was  plainly  visible  it  seemed  to  him 
as  though  he  had  lived  there  all  his  life,  and 
longed  to  get  home. 

"  I  might  just  as  well  go  over  with  her  at 
once,"  thought  he ;  and,  drinking  in  courage 
from  the  view,  he  grew  stronger  in  his  resolve 
with  every  step.  "  Father  will  help  me," 
thought  he.  "  I  cannot  bear  this  any  longer  ; 
I  must  go  over  there,  —  I  must !  "  He  walked 
faster  and  faster,  looking  straight  before  him ; 
there  seemed  to  be  a  glow  over  parish  and  gard. 
"  Yes,  to-day ;  not  an  hour  longer  will  I  wait ; " 
and  he  felt  so  strong  that  he  knew  not  which 
way  he  should  turn. 

"  You  are  leaving  me  behind,"  he  heard  from 
a  sweet  voice  just  back  of  him. 

It  was  Synnove,  who  had  scarcely  been  able 
to  follow  him,  and  now  had  to  give  up.  He 
felt  ashamed,  turned,  and  walked  back  with 
outstretched  arms,  thinking,  "  I  wLU  lift  her 
right  over  my  head  ;  "  but  when  he  came  near, 
he  did  not  do  so  at  all. 

"  I  walk  so  fast,"  said  he. 

"  You  do,"  replied  she. 

They  were  near  the  parish  road  ;  Ingrid,  who 
for  some  time  had  been  out  of  sight,  came  up 
right  behind  them. 

"  Now  you  two  shall  not  walk  together  any 
'onger,"  said  she. 


synnOve  SOLBAKKEN.  181 

Thorbjorn  was  startled  at  this ;  it  came  too 
Boon  for  him.  Synnove  became  also  a  little  em- 
barrassed. 

"  I  have  so  much  I  ought  to  say  to  you," 
whispered  Thorbjorn.  She  could  not  avoid 
smiling.  "  Oh,  well,"  said  he,  "another  time  " 
—  and  he  took  her  hand. 

She  looked  up  with  a  clear,  full  gaze ;  he 
grew  warm  under  it,  and  promptly  it  ran 
through  his  mind,  "  I  will  go  with  her  at  once  !  " 
Then  she  discreetly  withdrew  her  hand,  turned 
calmly  to  Ingrid,  bade  her  farewell,  and  went 
slowly  down  toward  the  road.  He  was  left 
standing  behind. 

The  brother  and  sister  went  home  through 
the  woods. 

"  Did  you  now  have  a  talk  together  ?  "  in- 
quired Ingrid. 

"  No,  the  road  was  too  short,"  said  he,  walk- 
ing fast,  as  though  he  did  not  want  to  hear 
more. 

"  Well  ?  "  asked  Ssemund,  looking  up  from 
his  dinner,  as  the  two  entered  the  room.  Thor- 
bjorn made  no  reply,  but  went  over  to  the 
bench  opposite,  probably  to  take  off  his  things; 
Ingrid  followed,  laughing  slyly.  Saemund  be- 
gan to  eat  again ;  now  and  then  he  looked  over 

w 


182  synnOve  solbakken. 

at  Thorbjora,  who  seemed  very  busy,  smiled, 
and  ate  on.  "  Come  and  eat,"  said  he  ;  "  the 
dinner  will  be  cold." 

"  Thank  you,  I  do  not  want  anything,"  said 
Thorbjorn^  and  sat  down. 

"So?"  and  Saemund  went  on  eating.  Pres- 
ently he  said,  "  You  were  in  a  great  hurry  to 
get  away  from  church  to-day." 

"  There  were  some  people  we  had  to  talk 
with,"  said  Thorbjorn. 

"  Well,  did  you  get  to  talk  with  them  ?  " 

"  I  scarcely  know,"  said  Thorbjorn. 

"  The  deuce  you  do  not !  "  cried  Ssemund,  and 
went  on  eating.  Shortly  after  he  finished,  and 
arose ;  he  walked  over  to  the  window,  stood 
a  while  looking  out,  then  turned,  and  said, 
"  See  here,  let  us  go  out  and  look  at  the 
crops."  Thorbjorn  arose.  "  No,  you  might 
as  well  put  your  coat  on."  Thorbjorn,  who  was 
in  his  shirt-sleeves,  laid  hold  of  an  old  jacket 
that  hung  above  him.  "  You  pee,  I  have  put 
on  a  new  one,"  said  Saemund.  Thorbjorn  did 
the  same,  and  they  went  out ;  Saemund  leading 
che  way,  Thorbjorn  following. 

They  went  down  toward  the  road.     "  Shall 
we  not  go  over  to  the  barley  ? "  asked  Thor 
bjorn. 

'*  No,  we  will  go  yonder  to  the  wheat,"  re* 


synnOve  solbakken.  183 

plied  Saemund.  Just  as  they  reached  the  road. 
a  cart  came  slowly  driving  along.  "  That  is 
one  of  the  Nordhoug  carts,"  said  Saemund. 

"  Yes,  those  are  the  young  people  from  Nord- 
houg," added  Thorbjorn.  By  the  young  people 
he  meant  the  newly-married  couple. 

The  cart  halted  as  it  came  near  the  Granlid 
men.  "  She  is  really  a  proud  woman,  that  Ma- 
rit  Nordhoug,"  whispered  Saemund,  and  could 
not  take  his  eyes  from  her.  She  sat  leaning 
back  in  the  cart,  with  one  kerchief  loosely  tied 
about  her  head,  and  another  drawn  around  her. 
She  was  looking  fixedly  out  at  the  two  ;  there 
was  not  the  slightest  emotion  in  her  clear-cut, 
strong  features.  Her  husband  was  very  pale 
and  thin,  had  a  still  more  gentle  look  than  for- 
merly, much  as  one  who  has  a  sorrow  he  can- 
not speak  of. 

"  Are  you  men  out  looking  at  the  grain  ?  " 
asked  he. 

"  It  seems  so,"  replied  Sasmund. 

"  It  is  doing  well  this  year." 

"  Oh,  yes,  it  might  have  done  worse." 

"  You  are  late,"  said  Thorbjorn. 

"  There  were  a  great  many  acquaintances  to 
take  leave  of,"  said  the  man. 

*'  Why  —  are  you  going  on  a  journey  ? '' 
aaked  Saemund. 


184  SYNNOVE  SOLBAKKEN 

"  I  expect  to,  yes." 

"  Are  you  going  far?  " 

«  Oh,  yes." 

*'  How  far,  for  example  ?  " 

"  To  America." 

"  To  America !  "  exclaimed  both  men  in  a 
breath.  "  A  new-married  man  I  "  added  Sse- 
mund. 

The  man  smiled,  and  said,  "  'I  think  I  will 
stay  here  for  the  sake  of  my  foot,'  said  the  fox, 
when  he  had  been  caught  in  the  trap." 

Marit  looked  at  him,  and  then  at  the  others, 
and  a  slight  flush  overspread  her  face ;  other- 
wise it  was  unchanged. 

"  I  suppose  your  wife  will  go  with  you  ? " 
said  Ssemund. 

*'  No,  she  will  not,  either.' 

"  They  say  it  is  easy  to  gain  position  in 
America,"  said  Thorbjorn ;  he  felt  that  the 
conversation  should  not  be  allowed  to  come  to 
a  stand-still. 

''  Oh  —  yes,"  said  the  man. 

"  But  Nordhoug  is  a  good  gard,"  remarked 
Ssemund. 

"  There   are   too   many  people   on   it,"   re- 
plied   the    man.      His    wife    looked    at    him 
again.    "  One  stands  in  the  way  of  the  other,' 
he  added. 


SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN.  185 

"Well,  good  luck  on  your  journey,"  said 
Sffiniund,  and  took  his  hand.  ''  Tlie  Lord  grant 
you  what  you  wish  to  find  I  " 

Thorbjorn  looked  his  old  school-mate  ear- 
nestly in  the  eye.  "  I  will  talk  with  you  by 
and  by,"  said  he. 

"  It  is  good  to  have  some  one  to  talk  with," 
said  the  man,  and  scraped  the  bottom  of  the 
cart  with  his  whip. 

"  Do  come  over  to  our  house,"  said  Marit ; 
and  Thorbjorn,  as  well  as  Ssemund,  looked  up 
in  surprise  ;  they  had  really  forgotten  that  she 
had  so  pleasant  a  voice. 

They  drove  on ;  the  cart  moved  slowly 
away  ;  a  little  cloud  of  dust  encircled  them,  — 
the  evening  sun  fell  directly  on  it ;  against 
his  wadmal  clothes  her  silken  kerchief  glist- 
ened.    They  came  to  a  hill,  and  disappeared. 

The  father  and  son  walked  on  for  a  long 
time  before  they  said  anything. 

"  I  have  a  foreboding  that  it  will  be  long  be- 
fore he  returns,"  observed  Thorbjorn,  finally. 

"That  is  best,  I  suppose,"  remarked  Sse- 
mund,  "  when  one  has  not  secured  happiness 
at  home ;  "  and  once  more  they  walked  silently 
Dn. 

"  You  are  going  past  the  wheat  field,"  said 
Thorbjorn. 


186  synnOve  solbakken. 

"We  can  look  at  that  on  our  way  back," 
and  they  went  farther  on.  Thorbjorn  did  not 
altogether  like  to  ask  where  they  were  going; 
for  they  had  now  passed  the  Granlid  grounds. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

GlJTTORM  and  Karen  Solbakken  had  already 
finished  their  dinner  when  Synnove,  flushed  and 
oufc  of  breath,  entered. 

"  Why,  my  dear  child,  where  have  you 
he<ia  '  "  asked  her  mother. 

''I  stayed  behind  with  Ingrid,"  answered 
Syataove,  and  remained  standing,  while  she 
took  o£E  a  couple  of  kerchiefs.  Her  father  was 
searching  in  the  cupboard  for  a  book. 

"What  could  you  two  have  to  talk  about 
that  ?iook  such  a  long  time  ?  " 

"  Oh,  not  anything." 

"  Then  it  would  have  been  better  if  you  had 
kept  with  the  church  people,  my  child."  Ka- 
ren gt!>t  up  and  placed  Synnove's  dinner  before 
her.  When  Synnove  had  taken  her  seat  at  the 
table,  and  her  mother  had  sat  down  directly 
opposite,  the  latter  said,  "  I  suppose  there  were 
others  you  were  talking  with." 

"  Yes,  there  were  many,"  replied  Synnove. 

"  The  child  may  surely  be  allowed  to  talk 
with  folks,"  said  Guttorm. 


188  SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKEN. 

"  To  be  sure  she  may,"  said  the  mother, 
rather  more  gently ;  "  but  still  she  ought  to 
come  home  with  her  parents." 

To  this  no  reply  was  made. 

"  It  was  a  blessed  church  day,"  remarked  the 
mother.  "  It  does  me  good  to  see  the  young 
folks  come  forward  in  church." 

"  It  makes  one  think  of  one's  own  children," 
said  Guttorm. 

"  You  are  right  there,"  said  the  mother,  and 
sighed.  "  No  one  can  tell  how  things  will  go 
with  them." 

Guttorm  sat  silent  for  a  long  time.  "We 
have  much  to  thank  God  for,"  said  he  at  last ; 
"  He  has  allowed  us  to  keep  one  of  ours." 

The  mother  sat  drawing  her  finger  along  the 
table,  and  did  not  look  up.  "  She  is  our  great- 
est joy,"  said  she,  softly ;  "  and  she  has  done 
well,"  she  added,  still  more  softly.  There  fol- 
lowed a  long  silence. 

"  Yes,  she  has  given  us  much  happiness,"  said 
Guttorm ;  and  later,  in  a  soft  voice,  "  The 
Lord  make  her  happy  !  " 

The  mother  was  still  drawing  her  finger  along 
the  table ;  there  fell  now  a  tear  upon  it,  which 
Bhe  kept  wiping  away. 

"  Why  are  you  not  eating  ?  "  said  the  father 
looking  up,  a  little  while  later. 


synnOve  solbakken.  189 

"Thank  you,  I  have  done,"  replied  Synnove. 

"But  you  have  not  eaten  anything,"  now 
spoke  up  the  mother,  too;  "and  you  have  had 
a  long  walk." 

"  I  am  not  able  to,"  said  Synnove,  and  bus- 
ied herself  with  an  end  of  her  kerchief. 

"  Eat,  my  child,"  said  the  father. 

"I  cannot,"  said  Synnove,  and  burst  into 
tears. 

"But,  dear,  why  are  you  crying  ?  " 

"  I  do  not  know,"  and  she  sobbed. 

"She  does  cry  so  easily,"  said  the  mother. 

The  father  got  up  and  walked  to  the  win- 
dow. "  There  are  two  men  coming  up  this 
way,"  said  he. 

"Why  —  is  that  so,  at  this  time  of  day?" 
inquired  the  mother,  and  she  too  went  to  the 
window.  They  looked  for  a  long  time  down 
the  hill. 

"Dear,  who  can  it  be?"  said  Karen,  at  last, 
but  not  quite  as  though  she  were  seeking  in- 
formation. 

"  I  do  not  know,"  replied  Guttorm,  and  they 
stood  and  watched. 

"  Really,  I  cannot  understand  it,"  said  she. 

"Nor  I  either,"  said  he. 

The  men  came  nearer. 

"It  must  be  they,  nevertheless,"  said  she, 
finally. 


190  SYNNOVE  SOLBAKKEN. 

"  Yes,  I  suppose  so,"  said  Guttorm. 

The  men  came  nearer  and  nearer.  The  elder 
of  the  two  paused  and  looked  back ;  the  younger 
one  did  the  same  ;  then  they  continued  onward. 

"  Can  you  imagine  what  they  want?  "  asked 
Karen,  in  about  the  same  way  as  the  first  time. 

"  No,  I  cannot,"  replied  Guttorm. 

The  mother  turned,  went  over  to  the  table, 
removed  the  dishes,  and  cleared  up  a  little. 
"You  had  better  put  on  your  kerchief,  my 
child,"  said  she  to  Synnove ;  "  for  here  come 
Bome  strangers." 

Scarcely  had  she  said  this  before  Saemund 
opened  the  door  and  came  in,  Thorbjorn  di- 
rectly behind  him.  "  Bless  the  company  !  " 
said  Scemund,  paused  a  little  at  the  door,  then 
went  quietly  to  greet  those  within  ;  Thorbjorn 
followed.  They  came  last  to  Synnove,  who 
still  stood  in  a  corner,  with  her  kerchief  in  her 
hand,  and  did  not  know  whether  she  should 
put  it  on  or  not  ;  indeed,  perhaps  scarcely 
knew  that  she  held  it  in  her  hands. 

"  Pray,  be  seated,"  urged  the  mistress  of  the 
house. 

"  Thank  you ;  it  is  not  far  over  here,"  said 
Saemund,  but  sat  down  nevertheless.  Thor- 
bjorn took  a  seat  by  his  side. 

"  We  lost  sight  of  you  altogether  at  the 
church  to-day,"  said  Karen. 


synnOve  solbakken.  191 

"  Yes ;  I  was  looking  for  yon,"  said  Steinund. 

"  There  were  many  people  there,"  said  Gut- 
torm. 

"  A  great  many,"  repeated  Sa3mimd  ;  "and 
it  was  a  fine  church  day,  too." 

"  Yes,  we  were  just  talking  about  it,"  said 
Karen. 

"  A  confirmation  is  a  very  touching  sight  to 
any  one  who  has  children  himself,"  added  Gut- 
torm  ;  his  wife  moved  a  little  on  the  bench. 

"  That  it  is,"  said  Ssemund ;  "  it  sets  one  to 
thinking  seriously  about  them  ;  and  that  is 
why  I  wandered  over  here  this  evening,"  he 
added,  looking  about  him  with  an  air  of  se- 
curity, and  he  changed  his  quid  of  tobacco,  lay- 
ing the  old  one  cautiously  aside  in  his  brass  to- 
bacco-box, Guttorm,  Karen,  and  Thorbjorn,  let 
their  eyes  wander  in  different  directions. 

"  I  thought  I  would  accompany  Thorbjorn 
over  here,"  began  Ssemund  slowly ;  "  it  would 
take  him  a  long  time  to  get  here  alone,  I  fancy, 
—  and  he  would  make  poor  work  of  it,  besides, 
I  am  afraid."  He  cast  a  sly  look  at  Synnove, 
who  was  conscious  of  it.  "  Now,  it  is  just  this 
way :  he  has  set  his  heart  on  Synnove  from  the 
time  he  was  oid  enough  to  understand  anything 
about  such  matters  ;  and  it  is  not  very  sure  but 
she  also  has  set  her  heart  on  him.     And  so  I 


192  synnOve  solbakken. 

think  it  is  best  for  them  to  come  together.  1 
was  little  in  favor  of  this  in  the  days  when 
T  saw  he  was  scarcely  able  to  manage  himself. 
to  say  nothing  of  other  things,  but  now  I  think 
I  can  vouch  for  him  ;  and  if  I  cannot  she  can, 
for  her  power  is  now  the  greatest,  I  suppose. 
What  do  you  two  think  of  our  making  a  match 
for  them  ?  There  is  no  need  of  any  haste,  but  I 
do  not  know,  either,  why  we  should  wait.  You, 
Guttorm,  are  pretty  well  off;  I,  to  be  sure, 
rather  less  so,  and  have  more  to  divide  among ; 
but  I  fancy  that  will  be  all  right.  You  will 
have  to  say  now  what  you  think  of  this,  —  I 
will  ask  her  afterwards  ;  for  I  am  pretty  sure  I 
know  what  she  wishes." 

Thus  spoke  Ssemund.  Guttorm  sat  in  a  stoop- 
ing position  ;  kept  alternately  placing  his  hands 
one  above  the  other ;  made  several  signs  to  raise 
his  head,  each  time  drawing  his  breath  more 
heavily,  but  did  not  succeed  until  the  fourth  or 
fifth  time ;  then  at  last  he  straightened  his  back, 
stroked  his  knees  up  and  down,  looked  over  at 
his  wife,  so  that  the  glance  now  and  then  took 
in  Synnove.  The  latter  did  not  stir ;  no  one 
could  see  her  face.  Karen  sat  drawing  her  fin- 
ger on  the  table. 

"  The  fact  is — it  is  a  fine  offer,"  said  she. 

"  Yes,  and  it  seems  to  me  we  might  as  well 


SYNNOVE   SOLBAKKE-N.  193 

accept  it  with  tlianks,"  said  Guttorm,  in  a  loud 
voice,  as  though  he  were  considerably  relieved, 
and  looked  from  her  to  Ssemund,  who  had  folded 
his  arms  and  leaned  up  against  the  wall. 

"We  have  only  this  one  daughter,"  added 
Karen;  "we  have  to  consider  a  little." 

"There  is  reason  in  that,"  said  Ssemund; 
"  but  I  cannot  see  what  objection  there  can  be 
to  giving  an  answer  at  once,  as  the  bear  said, — 
he  had  been  asking  the  peasant  whether  he 
could  have  his  cow." 

"  We  might  as  well  answer  at  once,"  re- 
marked Guttorm,  and  glanced  at  his  wife. 

"  What  I  thought  was  that  perhaps  Thor- 
bjorn  might  be  a  little  wild,"  said  she,  but  did 
not  look  up. 

"  That,  I  think,  has  righted  itself,"  suggested 
Guttorm  ;  "  you  know  yourself  what  you  said 
to-day." 

The  husband  and  wife  exchanged  looks  ;  this 
lasted  probably  a  whole  minute.  "If  we  could 
only  be  sure  of  him,"  said  she. 

"  Well,"  said  Syemund,  joining  in  the  con- 
versation again,  "  so  far  as  that  matter  goes,  I 
can  only  say  what  I  have  said  before ;  it  is  all 
right  with  the  load  when  she  holds  the  reins. 
It  is  astonishing  what  power  she  has  over  him  ; 
I  had  proof  of  that  when  he  lay  ill  at  home, 

13 


194  synnOve  solbakken. 

and  did  not  know  how  things  were  going  with 
him, — whether  he  would  get  well  or  not." 

"  You  should  not  be  so  hard  to  please,"  said 
Guttorm.  "You  know  what  she  wants  herself, 
and  you  know  it  is  for  her  we  live ! " 

Then  Synnove  looked  up  for  the  first  time, 
and  turned  a  pair  of  large  thankful  eyes  on  her 
father. 

"Oh,  yes,"  sighed  Karen,  after  a  moment's 
silence  ;  and  now  she  drew  her  finger  along  the 
table  a  little  more  vigorously  than  before.  "  If 
I  have  held  out  against  it  the  longest,  it  was 
because  I  meant  well  by  it,  I  suppose.  Per- 
haps I  was  not  so  hard  as  my  words."  She 
looked  up  and  smiled ;  but  the  tears  would 
come. 

At  this  Guttorm  arose,  "  Then,  in  God's 
name,  that  has  come  to  pass  that  I  have  most 
wanted  of  all  things  in  the  world,"  said  he,  and 
crossed  the  floor  to  Synnove. 

"  I  have  never  doubted  that,"  said  Saemund, 
also  rising.  "  Those  who  are  meant  to  come  to- 
gether come  together."     He  crossed  the  floor. 

"  Well,  what  have  you  to  say  to  this,  my 
child?  "  said  the  mother,  she  too  going  over  to 
Synnove. 

She  still  kept  her  seat ;  the  rest  stood  about 
her,  all  except  Thorbjorn,  who  sat  where  he 
had  first  taken  his  place. 


stnnOve  solbakken.  195 

"  You  must  get  up,  my  child,"  whispered  the 
mother  to  her;  whereupon  she  arose,  smiled, 
turned  away,  and  wept.  "  The  Lord  be  with 
you  now  and  always  I "  said  the  mother,  thre\> 
her  arms  around  her,  and  wept  too.  The  two 
men  walked  across  the  floor,  each  in  his  own 
direction.  "  You  will  have  to  go  over  to  him," 
said  the  mother,  still  weeping,  as  she  let  go  of 
her,  and  stole  a  loving  glance  at  her. 

Synnove  took  a  step  forward ;  then  stood 
still,  because  she  could  not  get  any  farther 
Thorbjorn  sprang  up  and  went  toward  her, 
seized  her  hand,  held  it,  knew  not  what  more 
to  do,  and  stood  there  holding  it  until  she 
gently  withdrew  it.  Then  they  stood  silent 
by  each  other's  side. 

The  door  opened  noiselessly ;  a  head  was 
thrust  into  the  room.  "Is  Synnove  there?" 
was  asked,  in  a  cautious  voice  ;  it  was  Ingrid 
Granliden. 

"  Yes,  she  is  here ;  come  in ! "  cried  the  father. 
Ingrid  seemed  to  hesitate  a  little.  "  Come  now ; 
all  is  well  here,"  he  added.  They  all  looked  at 
her. 

She  appeared  rather  embarrassed.  "  There 
may  be  somebody  else  outside,"  said  she. 

"  Who  is  it?"  inquired  Guttorm. 

'•  It  is  mother,"  replied  she,  softly. 


196  synnOve  solbakken. 

"  Let  her  come  in  ! "  said  four  voices  at  once. 

And  the  Solbakken  wife  went  to  the  door, 
while  the  others  exchanged  pleased  glances. 

"  You  may  as  well  come  in,  mother,"  they 
heard  Ingrid  say.  And  so  Ingebjorg  Granli- 
den,  in  her  glittering  head  gear,  entered. 

"  I  knew  what  was  going  on,'"  said  she,  "  al- 
though Ssemund  never  can  tell  anything.  And 
so  Ingrid  and  I  could  not  help  coming  over 
here." 

"  Yes,  it  is  just  as  you  want  it  to  be  here,'* 
said  Ssemund,  and  moved  so  that  she  might  ap- 
proach. 

"  God  bless  you  for  drawing  him  over  to 
you ! "  said  she  to  Synnove,  putting  her  arm 
about  her  neck,  and  patting  her.  "  You  have 
been  very  faithful,  my  child  ;  it  has  ended  after 
all  as  you  desired,"  and  she  stroked  her  cheek 
and  hair.  Her  tears  ran  down  over  her  face ;  she 
paid  no  heed  to  these,  but  carefully  wiped  away 
Synnove's.  "  Yes,  it  is  a  fine  boy  you  are  get- 
ting," added  she,  "  and  now  I  feel  perfectly 
safe  about  him,"  and  she  embraced  her  once 
more. 

"  I  tell  you,  mother  has  found  out  more  in 
her  kitchen  about  this  matter,"  said  Saemund, 
"  than  we  others  who  have  been  right  in  the 
midst  of  it." 


syi^nOve  solbakken.  197 

The  weeping  and  emotion  were  calming  down 
a  little.  The  housewife  began  to  bethink  her 
of  the  evening  meal,  and  spoke  to  little  Ingrid 
about  helping  her,  "  for  Synnove  is  not  fit  for 
it  this  evening."  And  so  Ingrid  and  she  set 
to  work  to  cook  the  cream-porridge.  The  men 
got  to  talking  about  that  year's  harvesting, 
and  what  its  results  might  be.  Thorbjorn  had 
taken  his  seat  by  the  window,  and  Synnove 
glided  over  to  him  and  laid  her  hand  on  his 
shoulder. 

"  What  are  you  looking  at  ?  "  she  whispered 
He  turned  his  head,  gave  her  a  long,  tender 
look,  then  directed  his  gaze  out  of  the  window 
again.  "  1  am  looking  over  at  Granlideu,"  said 
he;  "it  seems  so  strange  to  look  at  it  from 
here." 


DATE  DUE 

CAVLORO 

PRINTED  INU.S  A. 

UC  SOUTHERN  REGIONAL  LIBRARY  FACILITY 


AA    000  661  457    2 


ilVERSITY  OF  CA,  RIVERSIDE  LIBRARY 


3  1210  01275  2695 


I  i  ilH 
iiiiiiiiiiiiil 


